Dakota Johnson is about to don some of Hollywood’s most iconic heels.
The actress was cast as Marilyn Monroe in Impact on the flesha new film directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal that promises to tell the story of the cinema legend from a new perspective.
Announced by luxury car brand Genesis, the project celebrates what would have been Monroe’s 100th birthday and is already generating serious awards season buzz.
Rather than revisiting the same old Hollywood myth, Flesh Impact imagines Monroe at the height of her stardom while exploring the life she never got the chance to live.
Ellen Burstyn portrays “a version of Marilyn that the world never had the chance to see.”
“I have always been fascinated by Marilyn Monroe, so when Genesis first approached me with the idea of a centennial celebration project, I knew I wanted to work together to bring this story to life,” Gyllenhaal said.
“With ‘Flesh Impact,’ we present the timeless icon we know and love through a modern lens that reclaims its history. »
The filmmaker admitted that she initially wondered if she was the right person to take on Monroe’s legacy.
“I knew, of course, her major performances and I knew the general performance that she had brought into the world while she was alive,” Gyllenhaal told Vanity Fair.
“But I thought, I don’t know if I’m the woman for this job. Let me just take a minute and see what happens.”
She later added: “I find her acting so fascinating – weird, wild and very joyful, mixed with a terribly upsetting side at the same time. I kind of wondered what would have happened if she had had 60 years to herself. What could be different about the work she would do now?”
Also featuring Sepideh Moafi and Peter Sarsgaard, Impact on the flesh will make its world premiere at the 2026 Venice International Film Festival in September.
