'Bombshell' Trailer: The Fox News Scandal Gets The Big Screen Treatment (With Lots Of Wigs And Prosthetic Make-Up)

Bombshell chronicles the story that brought down Fox News founder Roger Ailes (played by John Lithgow). Three female Fox News employees came forward with multiple allegations against of sexual misconduct against Ailes, and he eventually resigned.  However, his legacy – Fox News – continues to thrive and be terrible to this day. Heavy hitters Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, and Margot Robbie lead the film, with Theron donning some very convincing make-up to play Megyn Kelly, and Kidman sporting yet another wig to add to her collection to play Gretchen Carlson. Watch the Bombshell trailer below.

Bombshell Trailer

Awards season pundits are already going gaga over Bombshell, shouting to the heavens that Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, and Margot Robbie are destined for Oscar nominations. That might be true, but this movie looks too, well, silly for my tastes. It's clear director Jay Roach is taking a Big Short/Vice approach here, trying to craft the Fox News scandal into a dark comedy – one that requires the bulk of the cast to slap on some wigs and heavy prosthetic make-up in order to play real-life people. The movie even features a script by Charles Randolph, one of the co-writers of The Big Short.

The Ailes sexual misconduct story is worth telling, and as important now as it was when it broke. But I'm not sure Roach is the person to tell it. And this trailer, which is quirky to the max – what is up with that Billie Eilish music choice – doesn't do his project any favors. But what do I know? Like I said, people are already shouting about Oscars here.

Bombshell claims to be a "look inside the most powerful and controversial media empire of all time," telling the story of "the women who brought down the infamous man who created Fox News." In addition to Kidman, Theron, Robbie, and Lithgow, Bombshell stars Kate McKinnon, Connie Britton, Mark Duplass, Rob Delaney, Malcolm McDowell, and Allison Janney. That is an incredibly impressive cast, so at the very least, this film is sure to feature more than a few memorable performances.Bombshell drops on December 20, 2019.