When playing an icon on the silver screen, one might say the performance itself is tribute enough. But others take it to the grave–literally. Actress Ana de Armas recently revealed that she visited the gravesite of Marilyn Monroe for her upcoming movie, Blonde.
On the first day of production of Andrew Dominik’s Blonde, Ana de Armas went to Marilyn Monroe’s actual crypt in Los Angeles’ Westwood Village Memorial Park. What ups the eerie factor here is that production reportedly began on August 4th, the 60th anniversary of Monroe’s death.
“We got this big card and everyone in the crew wrote a message to her,” Ana de Armas told AnOther. “Then we went to the cemetery and put it on her grave. We were asking for permission in a way.” One wonders if production would have shut down had the ghost of Marilyn Monroe said, “Thanks but no thanks.”
Ana de Armas also recently elaborated on just how much the role meant to her. “We were doing something bigger and something more special than just a film about [Marilyn]. We were in her service, in a way. She was all I thought about. She was all I dreamed about. She was all I could talk about. She was with me. And it was beautiful.”
The pressures of playing Marilyn Monroe undoubtedly hit Ana de Armas. But considering Marilyn Monroe gave her blessing–we guess?–that should have given her a bit of a confidence boost. Director Andrew Dominik certainly saw something. “She had this thing — and that’s the reason why the movie happened.”
Blonde debuted at the Venice International Film Festival earlier this month to mixed reviews. Our own Chris Bumbray, however, gave it an 8/10, calling Ana de Armas “extraordinary.” You can read his review here!
Blonde comes to Netflix on September 28th.