Naomi Watts to play Marilyn Monroe in Andrew Dominik's biopic of the star!

Here's the story from First Showing:

Back in December we heard about a film called My Week with Marilyn, which isn't so much a biopic of the legendary Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe, but rather a focus on a very short amount of time she spent in London while filming Laurence Olivier's The Prince and the Showgirl in 1957, as told in Colin Clark's book. However, it looks like a more definitive biopic about the late actress is on the horizon as ScreenDaily is now reporting Naomi Watts is set to play the blonde starlet in an Andrew Domink (of The Assassination of Jesse James) directed adaptation of a fake memoir (we'll explain more below) appropriately titled Blonde.

The Joyce Carol Oates book in question is referred to as a fake memoir because it takes the liberty of being told from the point of view of Monroe with the names of certain well-known male suitors changed to vague descriptions including The Ex-Athlete (Joe DiMaggio), The Playwright (Arthur Miller) and The President (John F. Kennedy). But there's no argument that this is a very accurate, eye-opening and emotional look into the life of one of Hollywood's most famous blondes. Here's what Publisher's Weekly says about the book:

Dramatic, provocative and unsettlingly suggestive, Blonde is as much a bombshell as its protagonist, the legendary Marilyn Monroe. Writing in highly charged, impressionistic prose, Oates creates a striking and poignant portrait of the mythic star and the society that made and failed her. In a five-part narrative corresponding to the stages of Monroe's life, Oates renders the squalid circumstances of Norma Jeane's upbringing: the damage inflicted by a psychotic mother and the absence of an unknown (and perpetually yearned for) father, and the desolation of four years in an orphanage and betrayal in a foster home. She reviews the young Monroe's rocky road to stardom, involving sexual favors to studio chiefs who thought her sluttish, untalented and stupid, while they reaped millions from her movies; she conveys the essence of Monroe's three marriages and credibly establishes Monroe's insatiable need for security and love. To a remarkable extent, she captures Monroe's breathy voice and vulnerable stutter, and the almost schizoid personality that produced her mercurial behavior.

After seeing her in certain scenes in Peter Jackson's King Kong, there's no doubt that Watts has the looks to pull off a Marilyn Monroe biopic, and though she may have over-emphasized the period dialect of the time (of course, this could very well have been done purposely to make the film feel like an older movie) I have no doubt of her talent for portraying Monroe either. I'm surprised there hasn't been a more high profile biopic about Marilyn Monroe until now. Various films have featured her as a minor character and there have been plenty of made-for TV films focusing on her, but as far as I can recall, this will be the first feature film about her. Should be something to look forward to. What do you guys think of Watts as Marilyn Monroe?

-I'm certainly interested...thoughts?

A second Naomi Watts film gets picked up for release by Summit...

...making this the second straight story combining the actress and the studio. Here's what The Hollywood Reporter has to say on the matter:

Summit has added a second Naomi Watts feature to its release slate, with the announcement that it has picked up most worldwide rights to "The Impossible," in which Watts will co-star with Ewan McGregor.

Last week, Summit also acquired North American rights, along with several other territories, to Doug Liman's "Fair Game," in which Watts stars as outed CIA undercover operative Valerie Plame Wilson opposite Sean Penn.

While "Game" is completed and will debut at the Festival de Cannes, "Impossible," which Juan Antonio Bayona is directing from a script by Sergio G. Sanchez, begins filming in August in Alicante, Spain before moving to Thailand in October.

It is based on a true story that took place during the 2004 tsunami that hit the coast of Thailand. It is being produced by Belen Atienza, Lopez Lavigne and Alvaro Augustin for Spanish production companies Apaches Entertainment and Telecino Cinema, which are coproducing.

Bayona and Sanchez previously collaborated on "The Orphanage," which Bayona directed, Sanchez wrote and Atienza and Augustin executive produced.

Summit has acquired worldwide rights to "The Impossible," with the exception of Spain, where Warners will distribute. Summit International will begin selling rights to the film outside of North America at Cannes.

David Garrett, Summer International president, and Michael Schaefer, Summit senior vp acquisitions and co-productions, will oversee the project for the company.

Watts is repped by CAA and Untitled Entertainment. McGregor is repped by UTA, which also reps Apaches, and U.K. agent Lindy King of United Agents. Bayona is represented by WME.

-Thoughts?

Summit picks up Doug Liman's 'Fair Game' before its Cannes debut...

...perhaps signaling it might be an Oscar contender. Here's the story from The Hollywood Reporter:

Two weeks before its Cannes Competition premiere, Doug Liman’s fact-based “Fair Game” has been acquired by Summit Entertainment. The studio has picked up North American distribution rights to the political thriller as well as those in Italy, Benelux, Scandinavia, Japan and CIS.

Starring Sean Penn and Naomi Watts, the film is based on the memoir written by undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame Wilson and her husband Joseph Wilson’s book, “Politics of Truth.” Jez Butterworth and John Butterworth wrote the screenplay.

Producers include Bill Pohlad of River Road Entertainment, Janet and Jerry Zucker of Zucker Prods., Akiva Goldsman of Weed Road Pictures, Liman via his Hypnotic banner, and Jez Butterworth. The film was financed by River Road, Participant Media and Imagenation Abu Dhabi.

“We choose our partners based on a like-minded philosophy,” said Imagenation Abu Dhabi’s CEO Ed Borgerding. “Participant, River Road and Summit share our commitment to supporting films that not only entertain, but also raise awareness of issues and encourage social change.”

-I'm interested in seeing how it does at Cannes...thoughts?