It’s confirmed! – well sort of. Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem are currently in the middle of negotiations to secure their roles as Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in an upcoming biopic film about the treasured television icons. The film, which is tentatively titled Being the Ricardos, is written by Aaron Sorkin. He’s also set to be sitting in the director’s chair. The film is reportedly being produced by Amazon Studios and Escape Artists.
Sorkin is certainly not a novice when it comes to crafting historical and biographical films. He’s best known for writing acclaimed films like The Social Network, Steve Jobs, and Charlie Wilson’s War. He just recently got into directing with 2017’s Molly’s Game – a Golden Globe-nominated production which he also wrote. He followed that up with 2020s highly-touted historical drama The Trial Of The Chicago 7. Sorkin is also the writer, creator, and executive producer of the critically acclaimed NBC political drama The West Wing.
Being the Ricardos is rumored to be set during one week of production of I Love Lucy The movie will start with a Monday table read through. The rest of the film will chronicle Desi and Lucy’s lives throughout the week leading up to the Friday night filming in front of a live studio audience. Of course, its plot probably won’t be as simple as it sounds. Considering Sorkin’s modus operandi, Being The Ricardos will likely delve into a crucial crisis point in the couple’s personal lives that will not only change their career paths but also their marriage.
Turning A Cherished Comedy Into A Political Drama
Sorkin has always been fascinated with making films of a political nature. Although it’s not specifically confirmed, it’s speculated that Sorkin’s film will deal with an incident that went down in 1953 when Ball met with investigators for the House of Un-American Activities Committee to defend herself from allegations that she was aligned with the Communist party.
In 1938, while registering to vote, she listed her party affiliation as Communist. According to Ball, she was never actually a member of the Communist party. She claims that she only listed her affiliation as such upon the insistence of her socialist grandfather.
Ball also allegedly held communist meetings at her private home on multiple occasions but she also denied knowing about them. She insisted that she was out of town when they occurred and that her Grandfather was the one that organized them.
Humorously, Arnaz once introduced Ball to the live studio audience before filming episode 68 by saying that the only thing red about his wife was her hair.
“Even that is not legitimate,” he added.
A Long Overdue Dream Come True
Sorkin has been interested in bringing Lucy and Desi’s story to the big screen for quite some time now. Cate Blanchett was previously rumored to be attached to the role of Lucy but she has since dropped out of the project. Being the Ricardos will be the third film in a row that Sorkin has both written and directed.
This won’t be the first time that Kidman will be portraying an iconic Holly star of old. In 2014s Grace of Monaco, she played Grace Kelly. Filmmaker Ryan Murphy is also trying to get her on board to play Vivien Leigh in an upcoming biopic.
The selection of Bardem to play Arnaz has already created a bit of controversy seeing as he is Spanish and Desi was Cuban. Likewise, not everyone is thrilled about Kidman playing Ball. The last time she tried to play a classic television starlet in 2005s Bewitched film remake, it went pretty miserably. Seriously though, have you seen that movie? It was a disaster.
The next logical question on everyone’s minds is who are they going to get to play Fred and Ethel?
Unfortunately, that’s all the info we have on the upcoming film so far. We’ll be sure to update you when we find out more. For the rest of this video, however, we’ve got something special lined up for you.
Some folks near and dear to Lucille Ball have recently come out to shine a little extra light on her life story. Up first, let’s see what Lucie Arnaz, Lucille and Desi’s daughter had to say about her parent’s divorce and her upbringing.
A Nice Clean Break
Lucie, who’s now 69, talked to Closer Weekly back in 2019 and discussed her parent’s divorce. She mentioned that her parents cared deeply about each other right up until the end of their lives. When they divorced in 1960 it was apparently a very amicable situation.
“They had a great divorce,” said Lucie
“They had a successful divorce. It was fantastic.”
Seriously though, when’s the last time you heard someone say that about anyone’s divorce?
Lucie went on to express her gratitude for how lucky she felt to have parents that cared so deeply about each other even after going their separate ways. According to her, they never had anything negative to say about each other. In fact, they remained the closest of friends right up until the end.
Their relationship, according to Arnaz, only became more passionate and friendlier after they were no longer married.
Desi and Lucy got married in 1940. They met earlier that year while on the set of ‘Too Many Girls“. Right out the gate, their marriage was pretty rocky. Lucille had considered filing for divorce in 1944 but they were able to reconcile their differences – albeit temporarily – after the birth of their son Desi Arnaz Jr in 1953.
I Love Lucy premiered in 1951
I Love Lucy premiered in 1951 and immediately became a cultural sensation. That same year, Desi and Lucille welcomed their daughter Lucie into the world. I Love Lucy ran until 1957. The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour subsequently ran from 1957 to 1960 when the couple decided to finally call it quits.
Lucie shared with Closer that once her parents realized that staying in the marriage wasn’t what was best for the both of them, things immediately got easier for everyone. It’s a lot like pulling off a band-aid. It hurts a lot more if you prolong the process. Once it’s off, it”s a huge relief.
After the divorce, Ball and Arnaz were able to figure out a successful system that worked for both of them. The kids spent the weekends and summer season with their father and would spend the rest of the time with their mom. Visitation was never a difficult thing. Lucille and Desi were always cordial with each other.
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Both Desi and Lucille Found Love Again
Arnaz eventually remarried. He and Edith Mack Hirsch tied the knot in 1963. They ended up staying together until her death in 1985. Desi passed away just one year later at the age of 69. He died of lung cancer which isn’t much of a surprise considering the fact that he was a life-long heavy smoker.
Ball also married again. She and Gary Morton got hitched in 1961. They remained together until Ball’s death in 1989 at the age of 77. She died of an aortic dissection – the same tragic condition that killed John Ritter.
When asked what it was like growing up with celebrity parents, Lucie described her childhood experience as being much like any other kids. It was just the way things were. She knew that both of her parents worked in the entertainment industry but that was pretty much all she knew about it. They went to work every day just like everyone else’s working parents.
All and all they had a pretty normal life. To Lucie and her brother Desi, it was no different than other kids with parents whose work would keep them out late. Everything else was pretty typical. It’s not like they lived a life particularly decked out in lavishness and luxury.
Lucie also noted that despite the ups and downs that Ball had in her marriage, she never took her success for granted. She was always grateful for all of the fans that appreciated her shows and stayed by her side until her death. She always took time out to show her appreciation to her fans.
Ball taught her daughter that she should never get upset if someone comes up and interrupts you while you’re eating dinner. If it weren’t for the fans, Ball and Arnaz wouldn’t have anything. They never lost sight of this fact and continued to be grateful for every single bit of It for the rest of their lives.
Lucille Ball’s Granddaughter Speaks Out
Kate Luckinbill-Conner, Ball’s granddaughter also spoke to Closer in May of 2018 and described what it was like growing up with the queen of comedy as her grandmother.
To Kate, her grandmother was just a regular girl from New York. She relayed that it was never her intention to be anybody’s icon. Kate shared memories about how her grandma used to give her the best bubble baths. Afterward, she would wrap her up in towels and do her makeup.
Sometimes she would dress her up in silk pajamas and let her nap in her ginormous California king-sized bed. Ball always had this grandmotherly way of making Kate feel like the world revolved around her.
Even when she was still young, Ball shared with her granddaughter hard-hitting lessons of what it meant to be a successful woman. Whatever Ball set out to do, she accomplished. She was driven. She wanted to be a mom, a wife, an actress and a comedian and she ultimately achieved all of these things.
Ball’s Good Friend Tom Watson Remembers Her Fondly
Watson told Closer that one of his favorite memories about Ball was witnessing her relationship with Desi. Even though their marriage didn’t work out, they always had a tremendous amount of love for each other.
They were both the best thing for each other and the worst. They had the ability to push each other’s buttons in all the wrong ways but the inverse was true as well. In the end, they had to go their own ways but they never tossed each other aside.
Their kids really helped them to stay good friends even after the divorce. They recognized that they couldn’t be with each other any longer but they never let the affection that they felt for each other die.
Well, we’re just about out of time for this video. It sure was nice to hear what Lucille Ball’s loved ones had to say about her and Desi. It’s also really good to learn that Ball and Arnaz remained on such good terms after they got divorced. You hardly ever hear of that kind of thing happening.
Anyway, what do you think about this upcoming movie, Being the Ricardos? Do you think that Nicole Kidman is the right actress to play Lucille Ball or do you have someone else in mind that would be better suited for the job? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
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