Movie TalkMichelle Williams Channels Monroe in the ‘My Week With Marilyn’ Trailer
Almost one year ago to the day, the first photograph of actress Michelle Williams made up to look like Marilyn Monroe was released to the public. Williams, the two-time Academy Award nominee, appeared to be completely transformed into the Hollywood icon, with her platinum curls, fuller face, and signature beauty mark.
But it is one thing to look like a legend, and it's another to portray her on screen. And now for the first time we can see and hear Williams as Monroe in the exclusive trailer premiere for "My Week With Marilyn," based on the true story of Colin Clark, who got to know the star when she worked on a film in England in 1956.
Watch the trailer, and read on to learn how Williams spent six months preparing to embody Monroe.
The film presents Williams with a two distinct acting challenges: to copy Monroe's bubbly, flirty public persona that movie fans know, and to shed light on the hidden, emotional side the star kept from the public. To get to the core of the character, Williams immersed herself in all things Marilyn. She told Vogue Magazine she spent six months consuming every movie, book, recording, photograph, and personal letter she could find. She said, "I'd go to bed every night with a stack of books next to me. And I'd fall asleep to movies of her."
Williams also had to transform herself physically to become the legendary bombshell. She was no stranger to putting on weight for a role, having added 15 pounds for her Oscar-nominated role in last year's "Blue Valentine" -- according to People Magazine she ate a pint of ice cream for breakfast every day. But in her Vogue interview she admitted she couldn't replicate Monroe's curves. She said she tried gaining weight, but, "it went right to my face... So at some point it became a question of, 'Do I want my face to look like Marilyn Monroe's or my hips?'" She ended up wearing padding to achieve a more hourglass-like figure.
Photos: Michelle Williams on the red carpet >>
So how well do you think Michelle Williams replicates the look, sound, and appeal of Marilyn Monroe? Watch a clip of Monroe from her classic "The Seven Year Itch," and then say how you think the two compare in the comments. "My Week With Marilyn"opens on November 4.
