In the new full trailer to Blonde, the Marilyn Monroe biopic starring Ana de Armas, we see the screen legend grappling with her onscreen persona and how it conflicts with her troubled “real” life.
“How did you get your start…in movies?” Bobby Cannavale‘s character asks Marilyn. “I guess I was discovered,” she replies. “I know you’re supposed to get used to it, but I just can’t.”
According to IMDB, Cannavale is playing “The Ex-Athlete”; In real life, of course, Monroe was married to baseball legend Joe DiMaggio.
She adds, “I’ve played Marilyn Monroe, Marilyn Monroe, Marilyn Monroe. I can’t face doing another scene with Marilyn Monroe. Marilyn doesn’t exist.”
“When I come out of my dressing room, I’m Norma Jean,” Marilyn protests, referring to her real name.
The trailer juxtaposes the star’s glamorous celebrity life with a private life that’s in shambles: Monroe dealt with invasive paparazzi and suffered from mental illness and the after-effects of an abusive childhood.
“Watched by all. Seen by none,” a title card sums up the star — and the person behind the facade.
Based on the novel of the same name by Joyce Carol Oates and also starring Oscar winner Adrien Brody and Emmy winner Julianne Nicholson, Blonde debuts September 28 on Netflix.