Netflix’s racy new Ana de Armas movie hits theaters Friday (and lands on Netflix soon)

I’m not ashamed to admit it: Ana de Armas is one of those actresses for whom I’ll always press play, even when I have no idea what a movie is about or who else is in it. Okay, fine — maybe I have in fact only pressed play on this or that movie in the past solely because she’s in it. Who can blame me? She’s a hypnotic, cinematic chameleon in pretty much every role she takes on. A fact that will be underscored even more so come this weekend, when Netflix’s long-awaited Blonde lands in select theaters.

Blonde Netflix release date

Netflix’s highly anticipated adaptation of Joyce Carol Oates’s novel about the life of Marilyn Monroe will get a brief run in theaters, starting on Friday. After that, the movie will be available to watch on the streamer starting September 28.

This is not, we should add, a straightforward biopic. It’s really more akin to something like an impressionistic painting. The emphasis is on the feeling evoked, not so much on presenting a historically accurate story. In the same breath, we should add as a reminder that Blonde — which had its premiere in recent days at the Venice Film Festival — will also be Netflix’s first-ever movie with an NC-17 rating.

Attesting to the not-quite-biopic nature of the movie, Netflix explains that “Blonde boldly reimagines the life of one of Hollywood’s most enduring icons, Marilyn Monroe. From her volatile childhood as Norma Jeane, through her rise to stardom and romantic entanglements, Blonde blurs the lines of fact and fiction to explore the widening split between her public and private selves.”

Blonde was written and directed by Andrew Dominik. And, in addition to de Armas, the cast includes Bobby Cannavale, Adrien Brody, Julianne Nicholson, Xavier Samuel and Evan Williams.

READ MORE: Everyone is already raving about Ana de Armas in Blonde – here’s where else to see her on Netflix

Ana de Armas as Marilyn Monroe

The film’s star has been very vocal that she doesn’t think an NC-17 is warranted by what’s shown in Blonde. Dominik has also told one outlet that the movie will depict a graphic rape scene, which was no doubt largely responsible for the rating.

The reviews, meanwhile, have already started rolling in from critics who’ve already gotten to spend some time with the film. They’ve described Blonde as everything from “horrific” to “spellbinding” — which is to say, it certainly feels like this will be one of the most memorable and singular Netflix film releases of the year.

Courtesy of Netflix, check out some promotional stills from the movie below.

More Netflix coverage: For more Netflix news, check out the latest new Netflix movies and series to watch.