If I’m being completely honest, this news does not upset me in the least. Apparently, Hollywood has decided to make a Lucille Ball bio-pic. And which famous, American, Hollywood redhead have they chosen to play probably the most iconic Hollywood redhead of all time? Yeah… they chose a blonde Australian woman. To be fair, it’s Cate Blanchett, who is pretty much our Aussie Meryl Streep, meaning she can literally play anyone and anything.
Cate Blanchett is attached to star in an authorized biopic of Hollywood legend Lucille Ball that Aaron Sorkin is set to write for Escape Artists, TheWrap has learned.
The film will chronicle Ball’s 20-year marriage to Desi Arnaz, with whom she starred on the classic TV sitcom “I Love Lucy.” Ball had two children with Arnaz before they divorced in 1960. She married Gary Morton the following year.
Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr. will produce with Escape Artists, whose executive Jenna Block will oversee development of the project on behalf of the Sony-based company.
This is not going to be some half-assed Lifetime bio-pic, you know? Lucille Ball’s kids are producing and with Aaron Sorkin doing the script, you know it will be sharp and interesting. Cate Blanchett doing Lucy with Aaron Sorkin’s words? Is it wrong that my first thought was “yeah, that works”? But who in the world will they get to play Desi? That will be fascinating. Even though he’s Mexican and not Cuban (like Desi was), I nominate Demián Bichir.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Lucille Ball was such a beautiful woman. Considering her children are involved in this film it might turn out well.
or it could be a whitewashed version of it. sometimes it’s good to have the family’s blessing, but often you don’t have permission to show a warts and all version of their family member’s story.
I don’t know that her kids would do that, I remember reading a text that her son wrote that addressed his parents’ toxic and abusive marriage. It was in an anthology that contained writings by adult children from dysfunctional families. I remember being shocked when I read it. Bing Crosby’s son submitted a piece as well. He was abhorrent to his sons from his first marriage. He was absolutely horrible to them.
Bing really was a cold father. He wrote in his autobiography that “children should only be kissed while sleeping”. Meaning that they should not be shown affection while awake — they might like it too much and ask for more! The horror!
As for Lucie and Desi, Jr. talking about their mom, I think they would be honest. Lucille’s obviously had issues with her kids. She publicly condemned Jr. for dating Patty Duke and essentially forced him to end the relationship. (I’m wondering if he didn’t also date Liza Minelli at some point …)
Lucille was indeed a beauitful woman and was so talented. She did lots of stuff before her “I Love Lucy” gig and worked hard as hell to get to where she did in the business. She was forever grateful to Sam Goldwyn for giving her a chance. I think it’s an honour to make a film about her life and good luck to Cate in doing it justice.
I agree that children’s involvement could mean a glossing over of certain things. Walk the Line is an example (the affair aspect and the first wife were portrayed in a questionable manner, though certainly other warts such as substance issues were allowed to be shown).
Lucille was indeed quite beautiful and did several movies long before her TV career, which began when she was around 40. She was also a lifelong friend of Ginger Rogers, as they worked together early in their careers.
I love Cate Blanchette, the woman can play anything!
She killed it in Blue Jasmine, if you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend it.
I can see her playing Lucille Ball, but I bet this somehow never makes it to production,
Cate is amazing though.
I don’t care how good she was in it, I refuse to watch a Woody Allen movie. He’s a disgusting human being and I know I’m not alone in refusing to put money in his pocket.
Same here OriginalTiffany. Not interested in watching a pedophile’s work.
yes and she was amazing as another redhead- Katherine Hepburn
i couldnt care less…
agreed, I was trying to think about what I wanted to say but I don’t have anything
Thanks for your contribution!
Seriously! Comments like this always crack me up. They cared enough to click on the link, read the story, and post a comment FFS!
Is Oscar Isaac too short to play Desi? He’s a possibility.
Great call
I cosign on that.
From a Hollywood actor perspective, this is who I want.
And he’s Cuban-American. 🙂
Yes, please!!
I’d be down with this.
I adore Oscar…such a good actor.
I live in Miami and a Cuban accent is quite distinct. I too admire Oscar Isaac, but Javier Bardem did a very convinable accent in Before Night Falls. At any rate some very fine men have been suggested here, lol.
Nestor Carbonell!
I didn’t see your posting. I suggested Carbonell further down, but I’m not sure he can hold the screen against Blanchett.
He was my thought too! He’s Cuban, he looks at least as much like Desi as Cate looks like Lucy, and he’s a strong enough actor to stand toe to toe with her.
I guess it’s not going to be funny, is it?
Thank you belle… This is an awful choice…because nothing sez ‘Lucy’ like an Australian…
Yeah, I see Cate as pretty humorless.
From what bits I have read about Lucille, she was not exactly always loads of fun in her private life. She was a complex personality.
One very touching thing I read about her is how she and Desi spoke by phone shortly before he passed. It was supposedly a tearjerker of a goodbye.
Its a bio pic not a remake of her show, everyone has their dark/sad sides.
Probably not. Quentin Tarantino was right about all of her roles being Oscar baity.
Oscar winning roles often (not always) require a high degree of acting skill. If you possess that level of skill, why would you agree to do more basic parts that don’t demonstrate what you are capable of?
Her catalogue of roles is outstanding simply because she is an outstanding actress capable of taking on the tougher jobs.
Enough with the biopics
yes! I rather have a book made into a movie, than another biopic or remake
I’m fascinated to see how they handle the Desi character. He was a very sharp businessman, way ahead of his time in terms of seeing the possibilities of syndication, but he cheated on Lucy constantly. And I can’t imagine the way Lucy and Fred and Ethel made fun of his accent will make it past modern sensibilities. Maybe they’ll make him into a victim-of-racism character, which would be pretty ironic, considering that he was a successful capitalist that pretty much ran the business side of Desilu until the early 1960s.
It will also be interesting to see if Lucy’s brief affiliation with the Communist party – she signed a membership card “just to please her grandfather” in the 1930s – makes the cut. Probably not, given that their kids are in charge of the production.
Amy was my first thought too. Cate is a good actress, but she’s so cold. And she comes across a s cold in all her roles. She’ll probably surprise me, but I just can’t see this.
Ups, wrong spot.
Also love Cate, but have never felt humor was her strong point.
This. Awful choice imo. Completely uninspired. It kills me that Sorkin is getting his grubby paws on Lucille Ball, ughhhhhhhhh.
Which of these lines will show up? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S78RzZr3IwI
I think it is interesting this is billed as a Lucille Ball bio-pic. What about Desi? As the kids are involved, I hope they’ll push for their father’s role in all of this being shown on the screen.
Why hasn’t a Lucy bio been done before now? She deserves it
Frances Fisher played her in a tv production, Lucy & Desi Before the Laughter in 1991. Not sure if others have been made.
I would have liked to have seen Amy Adams in this. She’s got more of that screwball/comedic vibe that Ball had and built her career off of it in movies like Miss Pettigrew and Enchanted. Cate’s great but I’m just kind of ready for Adams to have her moment and not have to share spotlight with anyone. Oh well.
That’s a bloody good idea.
I agree with you Kate – Amy Adams would have been a great choice. Cate is a little serious for this role. At least it’s not Debra Messing, which a lot of people have been suggesting as a good fit. Messing is by backstage accounts not a nice person, and I think it comes through in her screen presence. Now, whether Lucy was a nice person is still up for debate. Can you achieve everything Lucy achieved while being “nice”?
@Junior From what I understand, Lucy made the actress who played Ethel gain a lot of weight so that Lucy would look prettier on the show.
@Kate And while I think Balnchett is a good choice. You’re right, Amy Adams would be a great pick too
Personally, I don’t think that Amy Adams has the acting ability to play Lucy. Lucy was smart, serious, and had fabulous comedic timing. I think that Blanchett might be able to pull it off – if she can do the funny side of Lucy.
Agreed, plus im really sick of Amy Adams. :/
Amy can play smart, serious and has amazing comedic timing. She would have been perfect.
I disagree. I don’t think Amy Adams would have done a good job. Her issue is her voice. She’s just too sweet. I mean the woman can act, but her voice would be so distracting. Blanchett at least has the commanding voice. I liked Debra Messing for Ball appearance and back scene personality wise, but I don’t know if she has the chops. Honestly either way no to Cate B. Sorry. Just no. I like the woman. Loved her in blue jasmine, but just ….no. Michael K’s write up on this was hilarious.
I agree. This role will be a tough one, the actress will have to switch back and forth between portraying the seriously smart and savvy woman and the light and kooky entertainer. And in this particular case, I think Cate could be made up to be a dead ringer for Lucille!
Lucille Ball was a pretty serious person in her off-screen life. She was talented with killer comedic timing for TV, but man, very serious; not light-hearted at all.
I nominate Demian Bechir for all the things.
Second!!
Why not Andy Garcia? He is Cuban and I really think he could pull it off. I know he is 59-years-old, but he is an incredible actor and he’s a musician as well.
That’s a good call, Andy Garcia would be a good Desi too!
Excellent idea!
Andy Garcia is 60 and looks it. He might do the older Desi well, but the younger Desi – who met Lucy when he was in his early 20s and she was around 30 – is not going to work for Andy.
Andy Garcia is 59 … and Cate Blanchett is 46. What’s your point?
My point is that some people age better than others. Cait, in my opinion, has aged well and could pull off a role as a 30-year-old woman with appropriate wardrobe and lighting. Andy was once a glorious-looking man, but he lost his neck about 15 years ago, around the time of Ocean’s Eleven. He can play Desi near the end of Desi’s life, but he can’t play 20-year-old Desi.
Andy Garcia is a great choice, but I think he’s too old to play the part. Unless it’s about a specific time in the later years of their lives.
He’s a talent for sure and already played a similar role well in The Mambo Kings.
That’s a good one, but yeah he’s too old. Unfortunately. Wish they had made that movie 15 years ago.
Why is hollywood so obsessed with bio pics?
Because they seem to have completely run out of original ideas or are afraid of them. The good movies are mostly indies. Hollywood keeps making and remaking Marvel comic book movies, sequels, prequels ad nauseum. The last movie I saw in a theater was Ex Machina.
@Kiki Oscar bait. Films about real people are guaranteed to be nominated for awards.
Firstly, given that they are both dyed redheads, i think Rita Hayworth IS the iconic redhead in Hollywood.
Also, this casting is fine if they are making a drama type film without Cate being called upon to perform any comedy because she’s not good at comedy. Meryl, despite her acting chops, is crap at comedy. Meryl’s few attempts at comedy have fallen completely flat. that could have been for any number of reasons, but her presence didn’t add to the piece. DEVIL WEARS PRADA doesn’t count since Meryl was playing it completely straight and her character wasn’t a funny one.
LAK you should see Bandits. She is a natural riot there and her comedic timing is pitch perfect (when she sings I need a hero, lol). She might be mostly known as a dramatic actress but she is equally great in comedy , if not even more.
i remember that film. i have an aversion to Bruce Willis films so i skipped it at the time. Will watch it on your recommendation and try not to notice Bruce.
You must see Death Becomes Her. Meryl is hilarious. Bruce is in it too, funnily enough.
Yes! She was great in Death Becomes Her, and it’s one of my favorite comedies.
I thought Meryl was too mannered and self conscious in Death Becomes Her. If you see what Goldie does in her role, well that is what great comedic skills look like.
The only comedic role that I like from Meryl is Adaptation. It’s one of my favorite performances from her alongside The Prairie Home Companion, Sophie’s Choice, The Bridges of Madison County and Out of Africa.
PinkyRose is right. Meryl was terrible in that film. Goldie owned that role.
Meryl’s idea of comedy is to ham it up which is never good. You can see it’s not her natural place. she’s very good at drama. comedy is not her thing unless she’s playing the straight man to the comedic scenery/person.
Meryl Streep in Postcards from the edge?? Brilliant at comedy….
You think that was a comedy??
It’s a drama with comedic elements, in my opinion.
Exactly @paranormal girl.
So, I guess you haven’t seen the cinematic classic that is She-Devil.
LOL!!!!! i think the wart of Roseanne’s face was the star in that film!!!
@LAK: LOL! Ok, so it wasn’t a masterpiece, but I love that movie for all of it’s glorious cheesy and campy goodness.
I watched SD again recently, and I enjoyed that ensemble cast! Meryl really was hilarious in that role.
I thought Defending Your Life was funny, but that was her as comedic straight man opposite Albert Brooks.
Meryl was also hilarious in “She Devil” although again i guess she wasn’t playing that as a comedic role either…i love that movie lol
Debra Messing would be amazing as Lucy as well… Even looks like her…. Lucy 4ever…
Cate is always great in every role, i’m sure she will do a wonderful job. That’s interesting that the kids are involved, I will be curious to see what the tone of the movie is.
I nominate Pedro Pascal as Desi.
I think Cate Blanchett will be amazing – as usual.
I was trying to remember his name…. Yep, Pedro would be perfect
Not a good choice. She isn’t funny!!!! What about Debra Messing or Amy Adams?!!!
My guess is that since the movie is about her life, so there won’t be tons of comedy. The same way Man on the Moon about Kaufman was.
I thought Cate looked so much like Lucille Ball in that Cinderella movie, so I think physically she will be good.
Damn. You’re right. Ugh for some reason I just cannot get behind this. She’s just way too pretentious for me to see her as Lucy and as others have said not really that funny.
Debra Messing really looks like Lucille Ball. Like Dianna Agron looks like Judy Holliday. I’m really obsessed with this lookalike-thing. And it really bothers me when actors do not look at all like the real person. (Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner? No. Also, Stefani as Harlow was so stupid, they just both have platinum hair that’s all. Kirsten Dunst should have been cast).
Cate can transform into anyone, maybe even better than Streep. So I’m here for this. Ball was a character, on and off screen.
Actually she can’t. She does her stage acting in movies and looks misplaced. I hated her K.Hepburn in The Aviator.
This is nothing but another Oscar bait movie.
Thank you kay, thought her Hepburn was pathetic…
Lol, when I call my friend, I say “HOWAAHHHHD” in her Hepburn voice.
Just rewatched the Aviator last week and could not believe how awful Blanchett was in it. Wow. She was pretty good in Notes on a Scandal, though, so with the right material she can be good in a part.
Love me some Andy Garcia and he be perfect.
Side note he stopped by while golfing to pet my dog and compliment his beauty. He is every bit as charming and swoon worthy as you’d imagine.
Love Andy Garcia, but I think he is to old to play Desi at this point…
Is Diego Luna too short to play Desi?
Nestor Carbonell? He’d be a real long shot though.
Javier Bardem or Benicio Del Toro? It has to be someone who can hold 50 percent of the screen against Blanchett.
Not Bardem! That face can’t morph into a conventionally good looking one. Benicio hasn’t aged well & looks way too rough.
Blanchett doesn’t look like Ball, so why would the actor playing Desi need to be conventionally handsome? He needs to be talented, charismatic, and strong enough to play opposite Blanchett.
Benicio, sigh. Where oh where has the Benicio from Traffic gone?
Cate will do her Justice. I’d rather see an outstanding actress with major chops take on this role, rather than casting based upon resemblance to Lucy, or the current box office queens. Both Lucy and Desi were complex, talented artists. If done well, this could be an amazing movie.
Well said!
Well, Danny Pino played Desi in a TV movie. He would do well playing him on the big screen. Good actor and dressed/made up like Desi he’d be a dead ringer.
This is who I picture!
@ SAMIHAMI-
YES, Danny Pino was amazingly perfect as Desi. I only started watching that tv movie to LMAO @ him, but he brought out so many facets of Desi; I’ll keep my fingers crossed but not my hopes up…
I Love Lucy is my all time favorite comedy show of all time (even though, I’ve only seen it in reruns, I’m not THAT old)…Lucy and Desi, were way ahead of their time, and really started many techniques still used in sitcoms today…Lucy was the first women to be the head of her own studio…I’m not sure about Cate Blanchett, but hopefully, she will be good! I can’t believe that Hollywood hasn’t done a biopic about Lucy and Desi before this! I’m happy!
Duh…Pitbull would be the…
Hahahahahaha.
*gasps*
I can’t even finish the joke.
Ehhhh no. I hope this doesn’t get made at all (well only if it’s a Stage Door remake with Cate in all the roles)
Nope. Just nope. Bad pick IMO.
She’s definitely an odd choice, but I guess it coud turn out well. We haven’t really seen Cate do comedy so she might surprise us. I’ll give her a chance.
Based on looks, Mark Ruffalo is the only actor that really truly looks like Desi. But the whitewashing criticism would sink the project.
….no.
Wasn’t Desi Arnez a white Cuban? How would it be whitewashing? Unless you mean he should be played by a hispanic.
That’s exactly it, a Latino should always play a Latino, period.
That’s why I never got why they are considered the first interracial couple on t.v.. She was white and he was white, how does that equal interracial? They were just white people from different ethnic backgrounds.
You are going by today’s standard.
“White” as a label has always been fluid. Not that long ago Jews (ashkenazi and sephardic) were not considered white,neither were italians or latinos, even Irish people weren’t white.
Even today most people see latinos with dark “swarthy” features as non white.
In northern europe no one would look at Arnez as white, in fact, in many parts of the world only a certain “white” is considered “real” white. In America there is a politicial gain in including latinos as white today, even though most of them are mestizo (mixed).
So back then Ball and Arnez were absolutely an interracial couple (even though race is a social construct and there is no such thing as “Interracial”).
At this very moment, a certain blonde country singer turned tabloid figure is probably saying to her Cuban husband, “Why can’t *I* play Lucy????”
Just a quick note, I read a biography years ago that was very well done and brought up basically everything all te comments have mentioned about their lives (their childhoods, the meeting and the marriage, Desi’ business drive, the Communism, the difficulty having children, the infidelity, everything at Desilu, the relationships between the actors). I gave it to my sister, but I think it’s called “Lucy & Desi”, by Warren Harding – that’s the book jacket that looks familiar when I google it 🙂 if im wrong I’ll update because it’s a really great read. I’m going to borrow it back for another read. Lucy was fabulous with her comedic timing and ability, but she wasn’t “Lucy” in real life, so I’m fine with a dramatic actress playing her. lucy never hit the big time doing drama (and she was in SO many movies prior to ILL, plus her radio hits) so she might have found some irony and humor in that with this casting. And now I’m dreaming of a Clara Bow movie – true to the real story, THAT would be phenomenal! (Favorite biography “Clara Bow: Runnin’ Wild” by David Stenn)
I’ve really disliked Cate in the two movies I’ve seen her: The Aviator and The Talented Mr. Ripley. I can’t put my finger on it, but she over acts and lacks warmth. Gwyneth and Nicole are also known as cool actresses but they can really warm up onscreen, unlike Cate who I cannot stand. She’s grating.
She was not a great Kate Hepburn for the reasons you mention.
I don’t like when anybody tries to portray Lucille Ball. They always come across as caricatures with the flaming orange hair and red lips and overdrawn brows. Cate can play anyone, and I imagine she will try to stay away from the stereotype version of Lucy. Oh Lucy I’m home…..Desi really was the man behind the woman and television actors can thank him for some of their wealth since he paved the way for syndication. Babaloo……
I like Cate Blanchett but I don’t see her as Lucille Ball.
Lucy had a serious and dramatic life, and she was a trailblazer in a man’s world. Her marriage to Desi was deeply loving but also tortured. It’s a fitting subject for a dramatic film, but I assume they’ll also need to depict to some degree Lucy’s legendary talent as a comedienne, in which case soggy, self-conscious, takes-herself-way-too-seriously, “I’m qualified to discuss the Iran nuclear treaty on the Golden Globes red carpet” Cate Blanchett is a horrible choice. I guess she wins by a dearth of better options. This is disappointing. From her films as Elizabeth I, we know she can do red hair (also, Lucy started her career in New York revues as a blonde, anyway, and I think was a natural blonde), so I think physically at least Blanchett will pull it off. Now if only she could put a cork on her pretentiousness and be credible as someone actually capable of being funny. (No, I doubt the film will include much comedy, but they at least have to allude to the very thing that makes their subject a legend. That’s just a matter of common sense.)
I wish her children were not involved. They are disgustingly money hungry.
They even removed Ball’s remains (she wanted to be buried next to her second husband) across the country to the tourist trap of Jamestown,NY.
It’s like they never got over that their parents found stable and healthy relationships in their second marriages (Desi also remarried).
Lucie Arnaz is one of the most stuck-up and ill-mannered people I have ever had the misfortune of meeting.
She likes to blab on how her Father came here from Cuba with nothing and that taught her to be a good person. But she sure treats backstage and hotel staff like sh*t!
Is Kate known for comedic timing? This makes me think it will be aimed at the warts and drama in there lives I am not sure I could watch two hours of that. Comedic Lucy is going to be extremely hard to pull off.
Well given the fact she got great reviews in Life Aquatic, Bandits, Coffee and Cigarettes, Pushing Tin, she has comedic timing. Just because she doesn’t presents as a goofy person (which many here are saying, but in reality almost all her interviews are hilarious. See: her Jonathan Ross interview or any really) or does comedy always, it doesn’t mean she can do it.
Ughh. Can’t stand her ever since she dissed Sandra Bullock. Speaking of which, Sandy would have been a better choice since she has comedic chops. This Aussie has zero sense of humor.
Oh wow playing a Hollywood actress eh…
I love, love Lucille Ball! I’m so excited about this project. She broke so many barriers for women in comedy, and also for interracial relationships. Yay!
Interracial? She & Desi were both caucasians. If an Englishman married a Spaniard, do you think that’s interracial? What about a Swede marrying an Italian?
You are going by today’s standard.
“White” as a label has always been fluid. Not that long ago Jews (ashkenazi and sephardic) were not considered white,neither were italians or latinos, even Irish people weren’t white.
Even today most people see latinos with dark “swarthy” features as non white.
In northern europe no one would look at Arnez as white, in fact, in many parts of the world only a certain “white” is considered “real” white. In America there is a politicial gain in including latinos as white today, even though most of them are mestizo (mixed).
So back then Ball and Arnez were absolutely an interracial couple (even though race is a social construct and there is no such thing as “Interracial”).
I like Debra Messing, but from what I’ve seen of her in the movies, she won’t pull Sorkin -Oscar-epic thingy. I want Liv Tyler. She can really transform, can do saucy, serious, can be funny, is fascinating on screen. She would be amazing and blow everyone away. I’m sorry there aren’t any normal original scenarios in Hwood nowadays, Sorkin is running out of biopics to write ))
Liv Tyler is an awful actress. Stunning, but awful.
I totally disagree with your opinion. In every movie I’ve seen her in, she was brilliant. And captivating to watch, which is a big deal for a biopic. Plus there would have been a surprise factor, which is always good for awards )) Like Salma Hayek with Frieda.
Whaaaa? Liv’s amazing.
Any Liv fans who haven’t seen it, should- Space Station 76, she’s incredible in it.
Why does it matter to anyone that Cate’s an Aussie playing an American?
My first thought was they might try to cast John Leguizamo… comic chops, can look young or old, would have no problem playing a singer/performer, and is a bit of an entertainment entrepreneur himself.
This! leguizamo would be perfect but I’m sure Cate would want someone more “skilled and acclaimed”
Love Leguizamo but isn’t he too short?
I don’t remember Lucy having an accent.
Bad casting, Cate can pull off the sarcastic but not the adorable comic side, as it was Lucille’s trademark. She comes off as very much stiff and bitchy, and I don’t like her acting when she tries her hand at comedy, of any sort. If he wasn’t so much younger than Blanchett I’d cast Oscar Issac as Desi, based only on looks, but I don’t know if he can pull it off.
Cate can be funny. Has anyone seen Bandits with her, Bruce Willis, and Billy Bob T.? It’s one of my favorite guilty pleasure movies.
She is super funny there. The kitchen scene is flawless in it’s hilarity.
I think Cate is brilliant but …. Debra Messing embodies more of Lucy’s kinetic energy.
Hollywood studios are so geared to box office profit margins but I still think Debra would have rendered a better likeness to the zaniness of the Lucy character and turned a handsome profit as well. During will & grace many times I thought Debra was a reincarnated LB. Cate is too refined with her body movements and doesn’t come from a comedy background. It will be interesting to watch how she will step out of her established persona.
I guarantee that if Messing didn’t have red hair no one would be comparing her with Lucy.
Bobby Canavale as Desi.
No to Cate, just no. Felicity Huffman would be an interesting choice. (I can see everyone of you raising your eyebrows at that!)
Can Eduardo Noriega or Gael Garcia Bernal speak English? They would be my choices