It’s coming up to three years since Ana de Armas and director Andrew Dominik (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford) shot the Marilyn Monroe biopic Blonde, with Netflix having made the decision to push back its 2021 release to an unspecified date this year.
Based on Joyce Carol Oates’ novel of the same name, Blonde has been picking up plenty of buzz around Hollywood, with many tipping Knives Out and Deep Water star Ana de Armas for awards success for her role as the screen icon.
However, it’s also reportedly been causing Netflix execs headaches due to venturing into some rather graphic and disturbing territory, and despite a recut “to curb the excesses of the movie”, we now have word that the film has been slapped with a rare NC-17 rating for “some sexual content.” It marks the first Netflix Original to receive an NC-17 certificate, assuming it doesn’t undergo any cuts for an R-rating.
“It’s a demanding movie,” Dominik previously told Screen Daily when discussing the prospect of an NC-17 rating. “If the audience doesn’t like it, that’s the fucking audience’s problem. It’s not running for public office… It’s an NC-17 movie about Marilyn Monroe; it’s kind of what you want, right? I want to go and see the NC-17 version of the Marilyn Monroe story.”
SEE ALSO: Ana de Armas on transforming into Marilyn Monroe for Blonde
An NC-17 rating is traditionally the kiss of death for a movie, limiting studios’ ability to market and exhibit the film and crushing its earning potential. However, box office isn’t really a prominent part of Netflix’s business model, and so in Blonde’s case it’s possible the rating could actually increase awareness and heighten audience interest in the movie (although it will also presumably limit Netflix’s ability for a major awards campaign).
Featuring in the cast of Blonde alongside Ana de Armas are Adrien Brody (The Pianist), Bobby Cannavale (Boardwalk Empire) and Julianne Nicholson (Mare of Easttown).
