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Nicole Kidman Will Be Grace Kelly in 'Grace of Monaco' Period Drama

by Ethan Anderton
April 6, 2012
Source: Variety

News of a coveted new script surfaced last fall in the form of Grace of Monaco, a story that follows Grace Kelly during a period in 1962 when the city-state of Monaco entered a heated dispute with France, which had grown tired of the principality being a tax haven. Now the film has finally found a leading lady as Variety reports Nicole Kidman will play the iconic Hollywood starlet, and she beat out plenty of other top actresses who were vying for the part (though no specific names were mentioned). Director Olivier Dahan (La Vie en Rose) will be bringing the script from Arash Amel (who's writing the I Am Legend sequel) to life.

For those who don't know, during a visit to the Cannes Film Festival in 1955, she was introduced to Prince Rainier of Monaco, and during a visit to America, the prince ended up proposing to her. Their royal wedding followed later the next year and Kelly quickly retired from acting. The film doesn't cover any of the time in her career leading up to the wedding, but rather is set between December 1961 and November 1962, and has Kelly as a former Oscar winner and mother of two already having spent six years as the monarch of a European nation. Then suddenly the actress found herself called upon to save Monaco from an escalating situation regarding its standing as a tax haven, with French leader Charles de Gaulle giving her husband, Monaco's Prince Rainier III, six months to reform its tax laws.

Kidman looks like she'll fit the bill rather well, and she's due for something truly great on the big screen. Since delivering a harrowing performance in Rabbit Hole in 2010 (for which she was nominated for an Academy Award), she's only been seen in the laughable thriller Trespass with Nicolas Cage and the laughless comedy Just Go With It starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston. This sounds like the perfect role for the actress to get another Oscar nomination and maybe even win the statue which she previously landed in 2002 for The Hours. And considering the kind of performance Dahan got from Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose, I'd say some Oscar love is a safe bet. Sound good?

Filed under Casting, Movie News

From around the web:

Guillermo

Nicole is a superb actress!
Bobby

This is like having Pee Wee Herman play the role Brad Pitt in a biopic... Kidman's beauty is not in the same league as Kelly. They should have used an unknown actress for this. Not interested.
Tilden Katz

I don't think there is a known actress out right now who looks like Grace Kelly, but I feel like there are better options than Nicole Kidman. What about January Jones? They always talk about her character looking like Grace Kelly in Mad Men. Might as well let January play her. Then again, Cata Blanchett doesn't look anything like Katherine Hepburn and she did a good job.
Traveler

Nicole Kidman ten years ago, maybe. She's had too much work done to her face! However, she is a great actress and there aren't many who could pull it off. Am I the only one offended by the constant comparisons of January Jones to Grace? Nothing against January. I'm just saying..
Tesskentwell

I think they made a good choice as Nicole Kidman is a versatile actress & with good experience,nothing compares to January Jones. Nicole will portray the role superbly.
http://www.quanahblogs.com/ Quanah

Although I think Kidman is a great choice, she is 45, and Grace Kelly was 33 in 1962. I'm sure they'll make it work. It's not like Kidman looks aged or anything.
David Kooi

Grace Kelly got quite heavy after she left Hollywood for Monaco... I wonder if Nicole's gonna gain weight for the role.
Anne

Sounds like an ABC movie of the week.
Max Renn

In Hollywood, Nicole Kidman is box office poison. She's a wax figure with almost no acting ability and can't headline a movie. An insult to Grace Kelly.