Bombshell: Roger Ailes and The Women of Fox
2016 was quite the dramatic year for Fox News. It was the year when Roger Ailes, CEO, and Chairman of Fox News was accused of sexual harassment. The sex scandal began when Gretchen Carlson a recognized name in the network filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Ailes. She was the first to speak up, and this gave courage to many other victims who could finally tell their story.
Now in 2019, a film titled Bombshell is set to hit cinemas in December. Bombshell’s synopsis describes the film as a look “inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time, Fox News, and the explosive story of the women who brought down the infamous man who created it.”
The film’s cast includes Charlize Theron (Megyn Kelly), Nicole Kidman (Gretchen Carlson), Margot Robbie (producer Kayla Pospisil), and John Lithgow (Roger Ailes). Kate McKinnon will also play a fictionalized character.
Bombshell was written by Charles Rudolph and directed by Jay Roach.
The trailer, which is a gripping one minute and a few seconds long, gives us a peek at the three women playing our major characters. It features all three women in an uncomfortable elevator ride where the tension and silence are chilling. We can only assume that each person is undergoing a mix of emotions and wonders what the others know of it.
Other victims like Megyn Kelly also spoke on the issue. In her book, Settle for More, Kelly exposed and accused Ailes of sexual harassment. She wrote, “Roger called me up to New York and we had a shocking experience.”
“I was nervous about going into his office, concerned he might start in again. Sure enough, he did. And then he crossed a new line—trying to grab me repeatedly and kiss me on the lips.”
In her response to the casting of Kidman for herself in the film, Carlson also tweeted, “As the first person to take the risk – it also means I can’t share all of the details of what really happened, so I hope the true story is depicted,” she wrote. “The most important thing is that so many more women are now believed and have been given a voice.”
The film will hit cinemas on December 20. There are some questions on how the film will cope with the competition hitting cinemas at the same time. The adaptation, Polarizing Cats, will be released on the same day. Also, Little Women directed by Greta Gerwig will be on the big screen a few days later.
We remain unbothered as Bombshell represents its name in every way and promises to be a gripping drama with an amazing cast; not to mention its true message.
Read more from I On The Scene: HERE.
