After months of rumors and kerfuffle over the rating of the Ana de Armas Marilyn Monroe film “Blonde,” the movie has now officially been rated NC-17 by the MPA for “some sexual content.”
“Blonde” also appears to be Netflix’s first original movie to land the ultra rare NC-17 rating. And an individual with knowledge of the film said that “Blonde” has some adult, mature content and that the film’s writer and director Andrew Dominik did not want to compromise some of the more intense elements of the iconic actress’ life.
Rumors had swirled throughout the project’s development that Netflix may have been uncomfortable with some of the content, and after production was completed in 2019 the streamer held onto the film for some time. At long last, “Blonde” has been confirmed for release in 2022.
Dominik even addressed controversy over the film’s content in February, telling ScreenDaily, “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.”
“It’s a demanding film,” Dominik added. “If the audience doesn’t like it, that’s the f—king audience’s problem. I’m not running for public office.”
The filmmaker is no stranger to polarizing films, as he previously wrote and directed the acclaimed yet slow-moving 2007 film “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” and the hard-edged 2012 crime film “Killing Them Softly,” the latter of which landed a rare F CinemaScore from audiences.
Netflix has in the past hosted titles such as “Shame” and “Blue Is the Warmest Color” that have landed NC-17 ratings, and it does have some explicit international titles like “365 Days” that are rated TV-MA, but “Blonde” should be the first original Netflix title to receive the rare rating from the MPA.
“Blonde” is based on the Joyce Carol Oates novel of the same name and is a fictionalized account of Monroe’s life, with a cast that also includes Adrien Brody as Arthur Miller, Bobby Cannavale as Joe DiMaggio, Julianne Nicholson as Gladys Pearl Baker and Caspar Phillipson as John F. Kennedy.
Netflix had no comment.
News of the “Blonde” rating was first reported by The Playlist.
