The brand new teaser for Netflix’s Marilyn Monroe film Blonde starring Ana de Armas as the late star doesn’t begin the way you’d think it would. It’s the streaming service’s very first look into the highly anticipated project about one of America’s most legendary icons, and yet, instead of immediately greeting viewers with a cascade of Hollywood glitz and glamour, it simply opens with a black and white shot of a familiar-looking blonde woman crying softly to herself.
“Please come,” cries de Armas as Monroe in the Andrew Dominik-directed picture in teaser’s stunningly intimate first scene. With her hands clasped in front of her, she adds, “Don’t abandon me.”
“She’s coming,” a makeup artist replies after wiping tears from her face.
But who is the mysterious “she” in question? Netflix’s new trailer never tells you — but it does show you. The raw backstage exchange is followed by increasingly intense shots of the star facing a bombardment of paparazzi and adoring fans with a big smile on her face, dressed in instantly recognizable outfits — from the pink gown she wore in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes to the white dress she sported in the iconic photo of her standing over a vent, struggling to keep her skirt from blowing upward and revealing her underwear.
All the while, an eery recording of “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” plays, and far-away “Marilyn!” cheers get louder and louder.
And just when viewers begin to wonder what kind of strength a person must have to endure all that attention — and objectification — the trailer cuts back to the quiet scene in the dressing room. “She’s coming,” the makeup artist tells Monroe again. “She’s almost here.”
That’s when “she” finally arrives. In the trailer’s most chilling moment, Marilyn looks at herself in the mirror, throws her head back, and cracks a dazzling smile. Suddenly, she’s transformed from an emotional woman into the cultural phenomenon equipped for public consumption.
Rated NC-17 and hitting the streaming platform on Sept. 23, Blonde is based on Joyce Carol Oates’ historical fiction novel of the same title. It also stars Adrien Brody, Bobby Cannavale and Julianne Nicholson.
“Blonde boldly reimagines the complicated life of icon Marilyn Monroe,” reads a description of the new teaser on YouTube. “Blurring the lines of fact and fiction, the film artfully explores the tension between her public and private life.”
Watch the new teaser for Netflix’s Blonde below:
