Charlize Theron, Nicole Kidman, and Margot Robbie team up to take Fox News boss Roger Ailes and the toxic, sexist culture he promoted down in a new trailer for “Bombshell.” The drama is based on a real events and tells the story of women who came forward and accused the bigwig of making sexual advances and intimidating and threatening them.
We see on-air personality Gretchen Carlson (Kidman) reading notes decrying her for being a “man hater” and “sexy, but too much work.” Fox News superstar Megyn Kelly (Theron) is publicly targeted by Donald Trump, who makes misogynist comments accusing her of what she describes as “anger-menstruating.” Ailes suggests that conflict is good for ratings — he couldn’t seem to care less that Trump’s attack is wreaking havoc on his employee’s life.
One of the three women at the center of “Bombshell” is a fictional composite character: Kayla Pospisil (Robbie). The producer is told that she should “adopt the mentality of an Irish street cop: the world is a bad place, people are lazy morons, minorities are criminals, sex is sick but interesting.” Her colleague (Kate McKinnon) explains, “Ask yourself what would scare my grandmother or piss off my grandfather, and that’s a Fox story.” Eager to get on the air, Kayla is told by her boss that he can pluck her out and move her to the front of the line. “But I need to know you’re loyal,” he says. “I need you to figure out how to prove it.”
Ailes resigned from Fox in July 2016 following reports accusing him of sexual harassment and misconduct. He died in May 2017.
Theron won an Oscar for “Monster” and received a nod for “North Country.” “Long Shot,” “Tully,” and “Atomic Blonde” are among her recent credits.
Kidman scored an Oscar for “The Hours” and has also been nominated for “Lion,” “Rabbit Hole,” and “Moulin Rouge!” The “Big Little Lies” star can be seen in “The Goldfinch,” in theaters now.
Robbie received an Oscar nod for “I, Tonya.” You can catch her in theaters in “Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood.” She’ll reprise her role as Harley Quinn in Cathy Yan’s “Birds of Prey,” set to bow February 7.
“Bombshell” lands in theaters December 20.
