Netflix's Marilyn Monroe movie Blonde will be its first NC-17 original film

Ana de Armas in No Time to Die
(Image credit: Universal)

Blonde, Netflix's upcoming Marilyn Monroe biopic starring Ana de Armas, has been officially rated NC-17.

After months of speculation regarding the movie's certificate, the Motion Picture Association has confirmed that it has landed the adults-only rating due to "some sexual content". While Netflix has hosted a couple of NC-17 films before, such as Shame and Blue Is the Warmest Colour, this makes Blonde the streamer's first original title to receive the rating.

Based on Joyce Carol Oates' best-selling novel of the same name, Blonde offers up a fictionalized account of Monroe's life, and sees Adrien Brody play Arthur Miller, Bobby Cannavale portray Joe DiMaggio, Julianne Nicholson bring Gladys Pearl Baker to life, and Caspar Phillipson play John F. Kennedy.

Back in February, writer-director Andrew Dominik talked openly about not wanting to compromise on some of the more intense aspects of the book, and claimed that "if the audience doesn't like it, that's the fucking audience's problem."

In an interview with Screen Daily, he said: "I'm not running for public office. It's an NC-17 movie about Marilyn Monroe, it's kind of what you want, right? I want to go and see the NC-17 version of the Marilyn Monroe story."

Dominik's past credits include Brad Pitt-led dramas The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Killing Them Softly. de Armas is best known for her roles in titles such as Knives Out, No Time to Die, and Deep Water.

Blonde has not set an official release date just yet, although it's expected sometime in 2022. While we wait for it to arrive on the platform, check out our list of the best Netflix movies that you can watch right now.

Amy West

I am an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering all things TV and film across our Total Film and SFX sections. Elsewhere, my words have been published by the likes of Digital Spy, SciFiNow, PinkNews, FANDOM, Radio Times, and Total Film magazine.