Right: Nicole Kidman as Carlson in. In a week where a reality TV favourite finally addressed its known colorism problem, Netflix UK dropped The Strays (February 22) a psycholo, Over the decades, popular culture has created dominant narratives of the Dominican Republic that are most often synonymous with poverty, crime, or state vi, This story contains spoilers for Ant-Man: Quantumania. "Bombshell" exploded into the awards race last week, leading the Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations with four nods, including best ensemble, actress (Charlize Theron) and supporting actress (Margot Robbie and Nicole Kidman). That freedom, however, also allows a story about sexual harassment to wander, at times, into the realm of the fanciful. Alanna Ubach (Coco, Legally Blonde) also makes a cameo as Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, who also defended Ailes. Does that sound to you like the temperament of a man we should elect as president?". Would Laura Mulvey also have some things to say about it? Dustin is the founder and co-owner of Pajiba. The real-life events upon which "Bombshell" is based werepivotal for the early #MeToo movement (via Variety), and the film does its best to present this authentically. Thats in part because it is shot so unsparingly. Ill say this much, though. We would hear these stories about the spin, the director says. Group, a Graham Holdings Company. Its not Megyn Kellys fault that Roger Ailes was a monster. Rudi Bakhitar agreed, stating,"It really puts people in our shoes." (Theron also helped develop the material and co-produced Bombshell.) All the dance numbers! Megyn's story is the story of someone who comes to discover she is complicit by virtue of the institutional norms and her ability to manipulate them in the predation of a younger generation of women. Then there's "Mad About You" star Richard Kind, who portrays Ailes' longtime friend and confidante Rudy Giuliani. Kelly then comes forward with her own case of harassment, followed by more than 20 other women (via Vulture). And then he gives her an order: Stand up and twirl for me.. Heres how to watch them host the events red carpet, together with Derek Blasberg and Emma Chamberlain. Photo illustration by Slate. You know, the one when Lizzie and Miranda attempt to purchase their first bras by lying about needing sc, In 2020, an old theory resurfaced on the internet hypothesizing that world famous composer Ludwig van Beethoven may have actually been Black, sparking cont, Rarely do I watch a movie that leaves me truly perplexed. Another difference between the film and real life may be the intensity of toxicity that is portrayed. Was the scene between these two composite characters making a point about the secret lives of women? Things you buy through our links may earnVox Mediaa commission. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. This content is imported from youTube. Photo illustration by Slate. Megyn Kelly, with her glib comments about Santa and blackface and thug mentalitywith all the work she did to build up the network that has helped bring America so lowis a notably difficult vehicle for discussions of justice. You may email him here, follow him on Twitter, or listen to his weekly TV podcast, Podjiba. The most damning of the recordings was probably the one in which Ailes was caught saying to her, I think you and I should have had a sexual relationship a long time ago. Carlson received $20 million in the eventual settlement. Invented stories, he suggested, could be the most efficient way to talk about the things so many people wanted to be talking about when it came to those stories: the gray areas of consent; sex that is bad not in a criminal sense, but in another way. In the growing list of Academy Award contenders, Bombshell is one film that has been buzzing for a long time. Margot Robbie as Kayla Pospisil Robbie is the biggest star in the film not to play a real person: she will take on the role of Kayla Pospisil, a Fox News associate producer invented for the. The abuse here is psychological. Left: Rudy Giuliani. Rudy Giuliani (yes, he even weaseled his way into the Ailes scandal) is portrayed by actor Richard Kind. She may not be based on a single person, but Robbie's character endures some painful scenes throughout the filmI won't drop too many spoilers herethat were inspired by real-life events, and unfortunately make Kayla Pospisil all too relatable for millions of women. 'Let's start by killing her in the ratings. Much of what the movie tells us about him is backed up by accounts of the scandal. It is primary-colored and stylized and dizzying. She also launched and managed the sites virtual book club, #ReadWithMC. The Stand up and give me a twirl sequence required a particular form of self-awareness. Terms of Service apply. In "Bombshell," the film outlines the first account of allegations as appearing in 2016 from Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson. Right: Robin Weigert portraying Smith in. Short skirts were required and pants were banned." Chloe is a News Writer for Townandcountrymag.com, where she covers royal news, from the latest additions to Meghan Markles staff to Queen Elizabeths monochrome fashions; she also writes about culture, often dissecting TV shows like The Marvelous Mrs Maisel and Killing Eve. As they say, it takes a village, and here, theres the clear villain in Roger Ailes, but theres the secretary who sent the young women into Ailes office fully aware of what was happening (the secretary is also singled out in the Showtime series); theres Ailes wife, Beth (Connie Britton), who looked the other way when she knew better; there are all the women like Megyn Kelly who experienced the worst ordeals of their lives and knowingly allowed it to happen to the women that came after them in order to protect their own careers; and there are the husbands and the boyfriends, who knew what happening but remained silent, too, because they didnt want to rock the boat, or endanger a salary. Likewise with Kayla: Her willingness to look the other way creates this dynamic, and she realizes at the end that it affects herself. ", Review: Charlize Theron transforms into Megyn Kelly, blasts the Fox News patriarchy in 'Bombshell', 'I want my voice back': Gretchen Carlson calls for change on big 'Bombshell' day. Margot Robbie plays a fictitious news producer named Kayla Pospisil. So to capture these situations, it takes both genders to think through how these things work. While there have been examples of secret liberals within the walls of Fox News over the years, no one of her specific profilea lesbian who supports Hillary Clinton and works for OReillywas part of any of the reporting surrounding the Ailes scandal. Yes and no. The movie is also faithful in its depiction of the relationship between Kelly and Gretchen Carlson, who kicked off Ailes eventual ouster by publicly accusing him of sexual harassment: The two were collegial but not friends. AI Singers Are Unnervingly Good and Already Ubiquitous, Concertgoer Allegedly Orgasms While L.A. Philharmonic Plays Tchaikovskys 5th, Melanie Lynskey, Seth Meyers, and More Support WGA Amid Negotiations. The objective: to ensure the films balance of levity and gravity in which strong female characters are shown accepting a baseline level of sexual degradation and coarse behavior to get ahead in the cutthroat, male-dominated world of cable news wouldnt turn off viewers. Right: Anne Ramsay. Previously, she was an editor at Marie Claire, where she wrote and edited culture, politics, and lifestyle stories ranging from op-eds to profiles to ambitious packages. "Were not revealing the people we talk to. A number of other recognizable stars appear in the film that we didn't get to see in the trailer. She was, as in the movie, one of the people who pressured Megyn Kelly to speak out on Ailes behalf after the Carlson lawsuit came out. But there is some truth to the way the character becomes one of Ailes victims in the film: Kayla first meets with Ailes alone in his office because she sees it as a chance to advance her career, whereas he uses it as a chance to harass her. Left: Elizabeth Ailes. Mark Duplass stars as Kelly's husband, Douglas Brunt, an author and former CEO of the Internet security company Authentium, Inc. Bree Condon (Ironclad, Vampire Diaries) also makes an appearance in the form of Kimberly Guilfoyle, a former Fox News host and Donald Trump Jr.'s current girlfriend. Photo illustration by Slate. Does she come forward with the truth? Charlize Theron plays Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly in Bombshell, and the movie opens as she is preparing to host a 2015 Republican presidential primary debate that would go on to cause a monthslong feud between her and future President Donald Trump. Pospisil begins to tell Carr about what happened, but Carr interrupts, saying she cannot get involved. Former Fox contributor Tamara Holder told The Hollywood Reporter that she signed an agreement that comes with a penalty of $500,000 if she breaks her NDA, though it's unclear if Fox would follow through on that consequence. Gretchen Carlson, former Fox News anchor. She was previously an editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com. "Ailes had three different lawyers who we let Giuliani stand in for," Randolph says. With a clean updo, thick eyeliner, and a stern smile, she's almost entirely transformed into the former Fox News anchor. I often have a good sense of what transpired during those two hours, give or take, and dont re, Latines love entertainment. The film was directed by Jay Roach ("Trumbo") and written by Charles Randolph ("The Big Short"), who breaks down what's fact, fiction and somewhere in between. Roger Ailes, and John Lithgow as Roger Ailes. leading the Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations, accused of sexual harassment by more than 20 women, Charlize Theron transforms into Megyn Kelly, blasts the Fox News patriarchy in 'Bombshell', Gretchen Carlson calls for change on big 'Bombshell' day, Megyn Kelly approves of Charlize Theron's 'Bombshell' casting. Portrayed in "Bombshell" by Nazanin Boniadi, Rudi Bakhtiar was a Fox News journalist who came out with allegations against Brian Wilson (via New York), the former Fox News Washington bureau chief. Kayla is devastated that Ailes pressured her, that she gave in to the pressure, and that people know about it, and when Kelly asks Kayla to come forward, Megyn uses that empathy tool that journalists often use to elicit cooperation. In "Bombshell," this is word-for-word in accuracy, butviewers are led to believe that Kelly discussed this question before the debate with Lachlan and James Murdoch. In addition, the movie portrays Ailes as giving Kelly a pat on the back for this situation, and perhaps unsurprisingly, this was also untrue. It has to fit a predetermined idea of what men think is pretty, more specifically what Roger Ailes thinks is pretty.". The inclusion of Kayla in the film as a composite allowed these other ex-Fox News workers to have their stories heard. As for Ailes hard-to-miss derogatory comment about James in the film (Tell me that mouth hasnt sucked a cock), it supposedly really happened, though a Fox spokesman denied it. The long answer is that Kayla Pospisil is a composite based on a few different accounts from actual people with connections to Fox News. This fabricated moment was addressed in the Kelly panel by former "Fox News Live" associate producer Julie Zann: "This is shameful because it is unfactual it is victim shaming this is sending the wrong message.". There is a quiet rage simmering throughout A Thousand And One, threatening to spill out onto the changing streets of Harlem, from the, If you were expecting to escape the Oscars with dry eyes, were sorry to say that you definitely didnt make it out unscathed. Kayla also wonders, why did none of those women or any of the men who so obviously knew what was going on ever warn Kayla before she walked into Ailes trap? Finally, she complies, as the interaction she had thought was a job interview congeals into something else. Toward the beginning of "Bombshell," Kayla has a drunken hookup with Jess ( Kate McKinnon ), a fellow Bill O'Reilly producer who is a closeted lesbian and, more damningly at Fox News, a secret. Lionsgate While the three leading stars appeared in the initial teaser released in August, the full-length preview gave a . Kayla is surprised to learn this, but even more surprised to learn that its happened to so many other women, none of whom came forward. Instead, the character is inspired by 20 real-life accounts. In it, Kayla, a young and ambitious producer at the network, gets an opportunity that doubles as currency at Fox News: a private meeting with Roger Ailes, the chairman and CEO. La La Anthony, Chloe Fineman Will Play Fashion Correspondents at Met Gala 2023. Robbie plays an ambitious, wide-eyed staffer named Kayla Pospisil. Marie Claire is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Why is Fox News being sued again over alleged sexual harassment? "Her being ideologically ferventlike a dedicated Republican, but a little sexually fluid and utterly morally sincere, that's based more on women in my life. Its also true that there was longstanding tension between the brothers and Ailes, which is part of why they supported quickly conducting an internal investigation at Fox News. Is The Diplomat Returning for a Season 2? The filmits pun of a title offers a hint at whats to comehas a kaleidoscopic quality. "All the women who filed complaints about him who havegone public have been really brave in articulating specifically what happened to them," Randolph says. Those women, as real and historical figures, have contributed to the rise of a network that has often made a mockery of the very things Bombshell celebrates: collaboration, courage, justice. With the emotional adventure of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever closing out the controversial fourth, Joseph Bologne Could Have Been As Big As Beethoven In, Angela Bassett Doesnt Owe The Oscars A Thing Not Even A Smile, Tessa Thompson Talks Going To Couples Therapy With Michael B. Jordan, one of the people who agreed to be interviewed. (Image credit: Lionsgate - Hilary B Gayle), The Ultimate Guide to Stylish PJs for Moms: Heres What to Buy and Gift This Mothers Day, Examining the Lengthy Fallout Between the Once Close Prince Harry and Kate Middleton, Three Mishaps You May Have Missed from Prince William and Kate Middletons Royal Wedding on This Day in 2011, The 'Barbie' Movie Poster Is Already This Year's Most Iconic Meme, Documentaries About Black History to Educate Yourself With, The 56 Best Musical Movies of All Time: Iconic Movie Musicals, 'Princess Diaries 3' Is Happening, And I Absolutely Won't "Shut Up" About It, 90 Halloween Costume Ideas Inspired By Movies and TV Shows, Megyn Kelly's Most Controversial Moments Ever, Margot Robbie Wore Sharon Tate's Jewelry in 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'. She just said, Listen, I trust you and I trust the way youre coming at this. Charlizes collaboration and power in the overall hierarchy was imperative. Sure. Seeing it is a crucial reminder of how repulsive and destructive Ailes, and sexual harassers like he was alleged to be, can be.. Only the bravest celebs will go full catboy at 2023s Met Gala. This, of course, acts as the catalyst for the downfall of Roger Ailes, but it's not exactly how things went down. My television career combusted, and I couldn't get a job for over a year come after me. Written by Charles Randolph (The Big Short) and directed by Jay Roach (Austin Powers, Meet the Parents), Bombshell offers a "revealing look inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time: Fox News, and the explosive story of the women who brought down the infamous man who created it," according to its official synopsis. Shes beautiful, devout (to God. The film's most chillingscene is a private meeting between Ailes and Kayla when he pressuresher to lift her skirt. According to the Los Angeles Times, the book described how Ailes was willing to pay a female producer an additional $100 a week to have sex with him. Right: Richard Kind. Left: Abby Huntsman. Kayla isn't based on a single person's experience, but is actually based on many people's experience working at Fox News under Ailes, though, Kayla's image is maybe-possibly based on Tomi. on. Left: Greta Van Susteren. The scene between Kayla and Ailes is what roots the film as it explores the legal battle that led to Ailess ouster from the network. Alongside Nicole Kidman and Charlize Theron, as Fox and Friends co-host Gretchen Carlson and The Kelly Files host Megyn Kelly, respectively, Robbie plays a composite character intended to represent the various women who came forward with horrific sexual-misconduct charges during Ailess tenure overseeing the top-rated news network. The 20 women or so who spoke to the filmmakers via anonymity did break their NDAs, but the filmmakers and those involved in the film have also agreed to protect their sources. Following her confrontation with Wilson, she rejoined Fox News on "Fox and Friends." While it doesn't cover everything, "Bombshell" does a good job of addressing events that otherwise get overshadowed, and the film does still serve as an important beacon of hope for the wider movement. However, some viewers did feel that this was glossed over to make sure that audience members of different political or spiritual persuasions would still root for them. Nancy Erika Smith, one of Gretchen Carlsons lawyers, is portrayed by Robin Weigert (Deadwood, Big Little Lies). It is to have a tale told by a narrator who is, if not fully unreliable, then deeply fraught. There were good arguments about how disturbing Rogers breathing [should] be. Right: Nazanin Boniadi. It wouldnt have been as sleek. The camera lingers on Kayla, near tears, as he ordersher to inch it higher and higher, revealing her underwear. Throughout the film, Kayla must grapple with the fact that a man with a lot of power, a person whos the driving force behind a corporation she idolizes, sexually assaulted her. Right: Alanna Ubach in. There were good arguments about how disturbing Rogers breathing [should] be, says Roach. After losing her job in unfair circumstances, Carlson files a lawsuit against Fox News boss Roger Ailes (John Lithgow) for sexual harassment(via Variety). Bombshellpremieres in theaters everywhere December 20, 2019. The Murdoch brothers, and Josh and Ben Lawson as James and Lachlan Murdoch. Margot Robbie plays a fictitious news producer named Kayla Pospisil. Right: Charlize Theron portraying Kelly in, Left: Gretchen Carlson. Photos by Hilary Bronwyn Gayle SMPSP/Lionsgate and Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for American Magazine Media Conference. When it came time to go, Ailes did agree to a noncompete clause, and indeed didnt get his wish to say goodbye and address the newsroom along with Rupert Murdoch, who did that on his own, locking Ailes out unceremoniously. The last three years are ones of backward motion so accelerated that sometimes I wake up nauseous and seasick. Elisabeth Rohm (Law & Order) portrays Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum. Roger Ailes is eventually forced to resign from his position at Fox News in July 2017, and dies the following year. Unfortunately, it is actually worse.". Margot, who plays Kayla Pospisil in the film that dramatizes the . It is, like the cable-news network that is its subject and its setting, shiny and hectic. Cookies help us deliver our Services. The drama (in theaters now)goes behind the scenes at Fox News in 2016. I paused. It is revealing that one of the main characters, in this film that has marketed itself as a retelling of the sexual-harassment story at Fox News, is a work of fiction. She is uncomfortable. For Bombshell, a trio of A-listersNicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, and Margot Robbiewere Fox-ified. Watch the full trailer above. Both Kayla and Jess are compositescharacters meant to tell the stories of women who could not speak for themselves. But realistically, that would have been a suicide mission for me and my career.. "Bombshell" does show the audience how angry Ailes was at Carlson. And the women we interviewed while researching described that feeling. But we tried to communicate as much as we could with everybody." She really had been speaking to her attorneys far in advance of filing the actual lawsuitin New Jersey and against Ailes personally, rather than the company, to avoid arbitrationand its also true that she had started recording her conversations with Ailes in the year or so leading up to her firing. But Bombshell is primarily Kellys story. Margot Robbie is getting Oscar buzz already for her role as Kayla Pospisil. However, Bakhtiar's story goes further than this, as she progressed from her first experience of sexual misconduct at Fox News to standing up alongside Gretchen Carlson. She is almost indifferent to the other women and appears to prioritize herself and her career. This drama follows three central characters working at Fox News: Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman), Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron), and Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie). Former Fox News anchor Juliet Huddy allegedly met with "Bombshell" screenwriter Charles Randolph to consult on the film in her own words and to share her own experience with Fox News. Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman and Margot Robbie star in the drama "Bombshell," about the women who took down Fox News' Roger Ailes. When Creed first premiered in 2015, the world had no idea how big it would become; after all, it was just, Rocky Balboas iconic ascent up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art out of breath and in gray joggers as Eye of the Tiger blares in the, Spoilers ahead. She makes few demands, of her screenwriters or of her audience. Right: Malcolm McDowell. By the end of the movie, it appears that the resignation of Roger Ailes completely fixes all of the sexual misconduct problems on Fox News. Roach, the Emmy-winning writer-director behind Recount (2008) and Game Change (2012), and screenwriter Charles Randolph acknowledge the optics of taking on a project like Bombshell, particularly in an era when female filmmakers are still underrepresented in Hollywood. The lawsuit filed against the men made its point clear, stating, "Fox News would have the public believe that it is a different place from the Fox News that was run by former disgraced Chairman and CEO Roger Ailes. The movies anecdote from a makeup artist at the network who helped primp female employees on their way to see RogerOne of them came back down after a meeting, and the makeup on her nose and chin was gonealso comes directly from reporting of the scandal. So, how do you make heroines out of characters that some in the audience will see as deeply compromised if not outright villainous? LOS ANGELESIn "Bombshell," Margot Robbie and John Lithgow figure in the film's most disturbing sexual harassment scene. It had to be dark enough that we could put men who normally would not have these experiences inside Kaylas heart and head, so they could experience it with her. The dried-out husk of Kendalls soul is up, Roman is spiraling down, and the game of. Does she support Gretchen and stand by the countless other victims? Margot Robbie's character, a young and ambitious associate producer named Kayla Pospisil, is a composite character based on the stories of dozens of real women. Margot Robbie's character Kayla Pospisil is not a real . Left: Rudi Bakhtiar. Connie Britton is Roger's wife Beth Ailes. When Robbie's Kayla begins a new on-air role, she arrives at her desk with pageant queen hair, garish stage makeup, and a black-and-white bodycon dress. During a post-screening Q&A with Jay Roach and Charles Randolph, they discussed the importance of their research ahead of making this film in order to create an accurate and faithful representation. So, progress? Pospisil also mentions how she can prove her brand of "Christian millennial" is profitable by the millions of Instagram followers she has. Bollywoods silver-screen darling is both at the top of her game and just getting started. Whos Going to the Met Gala Dressed as Karl Lagerfelds Cat? The other women expressed anger at a scene they said was fictional, where the aspiring anchor Kayla Pospisil, portrayed by Robbie, scolds Kelly's character, played by Charlize Theron. Robbie plays Kayla Pospisil, a fictional composite. Photos by Hilary Bronwyn Gayle SMPSP/Lionsgate and Drew Angerer/Getty Images. One of those women who could participate in the suit is Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie, who also snagged a Golden Globe nomination), a Christian woman whose ambitions get her a meeting with. Obviously, the blonde hair and characterization lends the character to an obvious comparison to internet-star-turned-conservative pundit, Tomi Lahren. NY 10036. Read on for a full account of whats fair, whats balanced, and whats potentially neither in the movie. This is telling, from an ABC News piece in November 2016: I now know the number of women who were targeted, and its disturbing, she said. Starting with the makeup that transformed Theron into Kelly, the films pleasures and its indictments come in large part through its painstaking re-creations of real-life people. Bombshell shows Carlson planning her lawsuit against Roger Ailes diligently, as Carlson apparently did in real life too. Murdochs sons, Lachlan and James, are played by real-life brothers, Ben and Josh Lawson, respectively.
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