Being The Ricardos Trailer: Nicole Kidman Is Having A Ball As The I Love Lucy Icon
After guiding "The Trial of the Chicago 7" to plenty of awards attention in this past year's Oscars ceremony (although it was ultimately shut out), Aaron Sorkin returns once again to the based-on-true-events scene with "Being the Ricardos." Faced with the impossibly tall task of bringing the very public figures of Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball to life, the predictably star-studded cast nonetheless features a top pairing that caught many by surprise, to put it mildly. Now, however, viewers will finally have the opportunity to judge for themselves whether Sorkin's grand ambitions for this film are totally off-base or perfectly on-point. Check out the new trailer below.
Being the Ricardos Trailer
Back when the project was first announced, "Being the Ricardos" had been described as being "set during one production week of 'I Love Lucy' — Monday table read through Friday audience filming — when Lucy and Desi face a crisis that could end their careers and another that could end their marriage." Of course, while the popular sitcom series "I Love Lucy" depicted an idealized marriage and a perfect life between the real-life couple, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz's off-screen relationship encountered more than its fair share of drama. Multiple threats of divorce and some behind-the-scenes difficulties on the show made many headlines back in the 1950s, though their partnership in developing Desilu Productions proved to be an historic one. Franchises such as "Star Trek" and "Mission: Impossible" first got their starts through that very same production company and turned Ball into the very first woman to run a major television studio.
The film stars Javier Bardem as Desi Arnaz and Nicole Kidman as Lucille Ball, the latter of which caused a bit of consternation among those who'd already expected the role to be filled by Cate Blanchett, an actor long rumored to have been circling the part. No less an authority than Lucie Arnaz, the couple's daughter, weighed in to defend Nicole Kidman's casting as her mother. In another public display of support, Arnaz (who is also credited as an executive producer on the film) took to Instagram a few days ago to reveal that she has seen an early screening of "Being the Ricardos" and triumphantly decreed it to be — and I quote — "Freaking amazing." You can check out her full reaction below, in which she enthuses about how well Kidman and Bardem capture the intricacies and nuances of her parents.
"Being the Ricardos" also stars Tony Hale, Alia Shawkat, Jake Lacy, Nina Arianda, Clark Gregg, Nelson Franklin, John Rubinstein, Linda Lavin, Robert Pine, Christopher Denham, and J.K. Simmons.
"Being the Ricardos" opens in theaters December 10, 2021 and on Amazon Prime Video on December 21, 2021.