Blonde is a fictionalized depiction of Marilyn Monroe's life as one of the mid-20th century's biggest celebrities and film stars, whose famous roles include Some Like It Hot and The Seven Year Itch. Inspired by a Joyce Carol Oates novel, the movie stars Oscar nominee Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe. Both the film and the book it is based on are steeped in controversy, with Blonde receiving the infamous NC-17 rating for "some sexual content" - a first for not only a Netflix original movie but for any streaming service exclusive film. Netflix's Blonde tells a fictionalized account of Marilyn Monroe's life as she rises to become one of the most famous celebrities ever. It focuses on her Hollywood stardom and addresses some of the legendary conspiracy theories surrounding Marilyn Monroe, such as an alleged affair with The President (Caspar Phillipson), based on John F. Kennedy, and her early death at only 36 years old being an assassination.

Blonde also features two of Marilyn Monroe's high-profile marriages: The Playwright (Adrien Brody), based on The Crucible's author Arthur Miller, and The Ex-Athlete (Bobby Cannavale), based on the legendary All-Star New York Yankees baseball player Joe DiMaggio. Blonde, shot in a striking mixture of both color and black-and-white, depicts Norma Jeane's struggles to play the role of Marilyn Monroe for both the press and the public. The Marilyn Monroe depicted in Blonde suffers from the consequences of being typecast as the blonde bombshell in Hollywood, a fate many actors, Ana de Armas herself included, can relate to.

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How Similar Is Ana De Armas' Marilyn Monroe To Real Life?

A blended image features Ana de Armas in color and in black and white in Blonde.

Blonde takes a major swing in casting Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe. Unlike the Los Angeles-born Monroe, de Armas hails from Cuba. Despite this difference, Ana de Armas captures Monroe's iconic appearance as well as her voice and mannerisms. Although the film embraces de Armas' natural accent rather than relying on a Marilyn Monroe affectation, she captures Monroe's signature breathy voice. Technicolor recreations of Monroe's movies are also uncanny, especially Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, showing de Armas perfects Monroe's mannerisms to a tee.

How Ana De Armas Transformed Into Marilyn Monroe For Blonde

Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe and Bobby Cannavale as Joe DiMaggio in Blonde Header

Ana de Armas studied endlessly to transform into Marilyn Monroe for Blonde, on top of being in the hair and make-up trailer for hours every day. Ana de Armas stated that to get into character, she studied any material she could get her hands on, including films, audio recordings, videos, and "hundreds of photographs" of Monroe. She also stated that every scene in Blonde is "inspired by an existing photograph," and the thought of what Norma Jeane was feeling was always at the forefront of her mind during filming.

Ana de Armas also had the added complication of shifted production dates on No Time To Die due to Daniel Craig sustaining an injury. While filming for her scene as Paloma in No Time To Die was delayed for three months, de Armas went back to Los Angeles to film Blonde, despite her characters in the two films being so different. This makes her utter transformation into Marilyn Monroe in Blonde all the more impressive.

How Accurate Is The Story Of Ana De Armas' Marilyn Monroe?

Ana de Armas in black and white in a white dress in Blonde.

Ana de Armas' Marilyn Monroe isn't entirely accurate. Blonde is not a traditional biopic but an adaptation of a book whose author calls it a work of fiction. Instead of outright naming many characters, Blonde credits them with their occupation, such as The President and The Playwright. This makes Blonde lean into its own adaptation of Marilyn Monroe instead of trying to replicate her life and career entirely as a biopic would. This is not surprising given that Blonde's director, Andrew Dominik, has previously dabbled in a fictionalized retelling of a real-life story with his 2007 film The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.

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However, this does not mean that Marilyn Monroe's story in Blonde is entirely made up. Real-life scenes from Blonde include the premiere of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, the filming of the subway grate scene in The Seven Year Itch, and Monroe serenading JFK on his birthday. Although Blonde's story may not be a traditional retelling of Marilyn Monroe's life, with its director comparing it to the more unorthodox real-life adaptations of Raging Bull and Citizen Kane, Ana de Armas' performance captures both the appearance and spirit of Marilyn Monroe herself.

Ana De Armas’ Marilyn Monroe Racked Up Award Nominations Despite Criticism

Ana de Armas as Marilyn recreating a movie scene in Blonde.

Though the film's overall approach to Monroe's life story has resulted in a highly polarized score of 50 out of 100 from critic reviews on Metacritic, there’s no denying the talent or the work put into the role. De Armas has been gaining plenty of recognition since the movie’s release on Netflix including several Best Actress nominations on the film festival circuit. Prestigious organizations like the Golden Globes and the Academy Awards have also recognized De Armas, nominating her for Best Actress as well, though she lost out on the Golden Globe to Cate Blanchett in Tár. However, Anna de Armas is still the only Blonde cast or crew member nominated for a Globe or an Oscar.

NEXT: Why & When Marilyn Monroe Changed Her Name From Norma Jeane