Charlize Theron on why she put ‘personal issues aside’ to play Megyn Kelly in “Bombshell”

Let it be known that Charlize Theron doesn’t want the easy ones.

Since winning a best actress Oscar in 2004 for her portrayal of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in “Monster,” it’s been a roller coaster of tough bald rebels (“Mad Max: Fury Road”), female James Bonds (“Atomic Blonde”) and the worst people at your high school reunion (“Young Adult”).

This Friday brings “Bombshell” nationwide, with Charlize Theron, 44, playing Megyn Kelly in an arresting newsroom drama that chronicles how Gretchen Carlson’s lawsuit against CEO Roger Ailes tipped off a wave of sexual harassment allegations at Fox News, including a lawsuit filed last week by host Britt McHenry. The film features a trio of arresting performances, rounded out with Nicole Kidman as Carlson and Margot Robbie as Kayla, a fictional young producer targeted by Ailes.

Many have marveled at how convincingly Theron, who also produced the film, transformed into Kelly thanks to subtle prosthetic eye pieces, colored contacts and a deeper octave. (Kelly recently said even her 6-year-old son thought it was her on the movie poster.)

In person, Theron, holding onto a cup of tea while battling a winter cold, says she relied on Kelly’s public record rather than a face-to-face with the TV star – nor does she think any sort of televised sit-down now between the two would be meaningful. “I don’t see the need of doing anything sensational like that,” she says.

Director Jay Roach, who last waded into the political sphere with Bryan Cranston’s “Trumbo” and the Sarah Palin-focused HBO film “Game Change,” says they’ve purposely cloaked the process in making “Bombshell.”

“We’ve made a promise to every person we spoke to, and we spoke to many, that we wouldn’t reveal who we talked to or didn’t talk to, because we wanted really honest off-the-record conversations” to get “Bombshell” right, he says…….read more

Source: USA Today