Naomi Watts (Mullholland Drive) has signed on to star as the iconic Marilyn Monroe in a new adaptation of the troubled starlets life, Screen Daily reports. The film will be based on the fictionalized biography by Joyce Carol Oates which has previously been adapted for a CBS TV movie starring Poppy Montgomery in the lead role.
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford director Andrew Dominik will be directing the film which is being shopped around for international distributors at the Cannes Film Festival. Shooting is expected to begin early next year on the $20 million dollar film.
Dominik was quoted as saying that he wants “to tell the story of Norma Jean as a central figure in a fairytale; an orphan child lost in the woods of Hollywood, being consumed by that great icon of the twentieth century.”
This interpretation of the life of Marilyn could be astounding in the hands of Dominik. We’ve seen a plethora of TV movies (including the camp-tastic Norma Jean and Marilyn starring Ashley Judd and Mira Sorvino) but this take could breathe a breath of fresh air into the icon. Watts is an odd choice for the bubbly actress but I’ll withhold reservations until we see what she brings to the table.
Are you excited to see Dominik take on Marilyn Monroe?