In theaters now, Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, and Margot Robbie star in the revealing Fox News film “Bombshell.”
The movie covers the events leading up to the infamous Fox News scandal of 2016, that saw to Fox News CEO Roger Ailes ousted for sexually harassing a number of female employees. The film hit theaters this week, only 3 years post the firing. At a special NYC screening, this Monday, Bombshell’s producer and star Charlize Theron told the Knockturnal that this timely release only serves as a benefit to the storytelling.
“I’ve never had a film come out at this zeitgeist moment where the cultural conversation and social conversation is so in tune with the story we’re trying to tell … I made one of these films about a class action lawsuit in 2004 and there wasn’t a conversation and nobody cared. I think the more we can illuminate these stories, the more it won’t go away, the more we actually have to face it and deal with it.”
The film’s screenwriter Charles Randolph is known for his work on The Big Short (2017). For Bombshell Randolph chose to echo the slightly comedic tone he incorporated into his past work. He says it helps to engage the audience despite the heavy subject matter.
“That’s the best way to emotionally engage the audience. If I can take your biases against these women that most people bring to the theater, not all but most, I can make you laugh at them. And then after you’re laughing at them, you’re laughing with them. And once you’re laughing with them they can break your heart. So getting these characters to make us laugh on whatever level is the best way to engage.”
“The audience will go with you from scene to scene based on plot, based on character desire, also thematically. That’s what I learned on The Big Short. You can really take audiences on this journey, as long as they understand why they’re on this journey. So because we know it’s about why this man got fired, we know where we’re headed. That sort of provided all the language we needed to make the scenes work,” he continued.
Brigette Lundy-Paine, known for her role on Netflix’s Atypical, plays a production assistant to Megan Kelly in the film. She says that it was interesting working on a film based on reality.
“It’s crazy to do something about real life, so close to it”
“Our first day of shooting, she got fired from NBC for talking about when she was young it’s ok to do blackface…we were like ‘should we be doing this?’”
Lundy-Paine says she’s not at all surprised by Megan Kelly’s less than thrilled reaction to the film.
“I think she should be honored that Charlize is playing her, but I would not be happy if this movie got made about me. Even though she comes out a hero is some way.”
Bombshell is in theaters now.
