Page 96 - You - South Africa (February 2020)
P. 96
YOU NEWS Charlize Theron
has been hailed for
BECOMING broadcaster Megyn
her portrayal of
former Fox News
Kelly (FAR LEFT).
MEGYN
Charlize Theron’s amazing transformation
in Bombshell has earned her an
Oscarnomination COMPILED BY NICI DE WET
HE was just starting out in
HE j t t t i t i
Hollywood–anaiveyoung
actress from SA – when a
famous director asked her
to audition at his house. Ar-
riving at his mansion, she
found him in his pyjamas lize says. “It pushes a lot of emotion out Thank you @TheAcademy.”
and as he groped her leg he of you when you watch it.” Still, she isn’t allowing herself to get her
left her in no doubt about what he really She plays Megyn Kelly, the show’s hopes up. “Look, it’s been a thrilling cou-
expected from the meeting. queen bee news anchor who teams up ple of weeks,” she told TV talk-show host
Charlize Theron made her apologies with fellow newscaster Gretchen Carlson Jimmy Kimmel. “I was nominated for
and left. Sitting in her car, she wondered (Nicole Kidman) and newbie Kayla Pos- a Golden Globe, I was nominated for
how things could have gone so horribly pisil (Margot Robbie) to blow the whistle a Critics’ Choice, but I didn’t win.”
wrong. Was she somehow to blame? Had on their sex-pest boss, Fox News CEO Her kids, Jackson (7) and August (4),
she sent the guy mixed messages? Roger Ailes (John Lithgow). were very disappointed, she added.
Years later she realised she’d experi- Thanks to their efforts the TV titan – “Their reaction was a mixture of super
enced a classic case of sexual harassment who in one scene makes an employee lift sad and also kind of angry.”
– and Charlize (44) is outspoken on the her skirt in his office to show him her un- Win or lose, though, she’s received the
issue that led to the downfall of moguls derwear – was fired in 2016. most important nod of all: from Megyn
such as Harvey Weinstein and sparked The movie has been winning rave re- Kelly herself. The 49-year-old, who has
the global #MeToo movement. views and earned Oscar nominations for worked in recent years as a talk-show
Now the Benoni-born beauty is tack- Charlize (best actress) and Margot (best host and an NBC News correspondent,
ling the topic in her acclaimed new film, supporting actress). watched the movie with several of her
Bombshell. Based on real-life events, it As one critic put it, Charlize’s perfor- Fox News co-workers.
exposes the culture of sexual harassment mance as the fiercely ambitious Megyn “It was an incredibly moving experi-
in the slick corridors of top conservative is “gobsmackingly good” and “Oscar wor- ence,” she says.
TV news channel Fox News during the thy” – and Charlize was delighted when Bombshell is one of her career high-
1990s and early 2000s. she was nominated for a little golden lights, Charlize says. “This movie really is
“It’s heartbreaking, this film, and it’s statuette. important. I believe that in every part of
disturbing and funny and absurd,” Char- “Holy shit,” she tweeted. “I’m floored. my body. We should be able to go to work
94 | 6 FEBRUARY 2020 you.co.za
