Brad Pitt hails Ana de Armas' casting in 'Blonde' despite strong backlash

The Gray Man star Ana de Armas has been at the receiving end of criticism after the trailer of her next film Blonde dropped online where she can be seen playing the role of Marilyn Monroe. The trailer sparked criticism over de Armas' accent not necessarily matching up to Monroe's voice. 

Post the attacks on the star online, Monroe’s estate showered their support on the star for playing the star and even expressed how they are looking forward to the release. Laying their faith in Armas for playing the late star, Marc Rosen, president of entertainment at Authentic Brands Group (ABG), which owns the Marilyn Monroe Estate, said, ‘Marilyn Monroe is a singular Hollywood and pop culture icon that transcends generations and history.’

Now, in an interesting turn of events, post Marylin Monroe’s estate showered their support to actor Ana De Armas, producer Brad Pitt also had some encouraging words for The Gray Man actor.

Brad Pitt supports Ana de Armas's casting in Blonde

The Oscar winner who has bankrolled the project through his Plan B production banner told Entertainment Tonight how Ana has been “phenomenal” as the late beauty icon. “That’s a tough dress to fill. It was 10 years in the making. It wasn’t until we found Ana that we could get it across the finish line,” said Once Upon a Time in Hollywood star.

For the unversed, while the film, based on Joyce Carol Oates' book of the same name, is not authorized by the late actress' estate, they support de Armas' portrayal of Monroe. Marc Rosen issued a statement to Variety and explained how they felt Ana was a great casting choice by the makers to fill in the shoes of the late star.

"Marilyn Monroe is a singular Hollywood and pop culture icon that transcends generations and history. Any actor that steps into that role knows they have big shoes to fill. Based on the trailer alone, it looks like Ana was a great casting choice as she captures Marilyn’s glamour, humanity, and vulnerability. We can’t wait to see the film in its entirety!”, said Rosen in the statement. 

In a prior interview with The Times of London, before the trailer was released, Ana de Armas shared how she prepared to take on the role of Monroe. "It took me nine months of dialect coaching, and practicing and some ADR sessions [to get the accent right]," she said. "It was a big torture, so exhausting. My brain was fried.", she added. 

In the forthcoming film Blonde, Ana will be seen as Monroe, who died in 1962. The biopic will show the actress giving glitz and glamour in the public eye, but falling apart in private. The teaser goes on to show Marilyn being dragged down a corridor, crashing her car, and fleeing a building. 

IMAGE: Instagram/Ana_De_Armas/AP