For the uninitiated, Big Little Lies is an upcoming American comedy-drama mini-series created by David E Kelly and based on the book which goes by the same name. The seven-episode series began filming in January 2016 and will premiere in just about a month from now – February 19, 2017. The series stars Reese Witherspoon, the American actress and producer famous for playing the role of Elle Woods in the 2001 movie Legally Blonde, and Nicole Kidman, the Australian actress popular for her role in Batman Forever. Reese Witherspoon plays the character of Madeline Martha Mackenzie and Nicole Kidman plays the character of Celeste Wright.
Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman keen on changing Hollywood
Big Little Lies series stars Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman are also co-executive producers of the show and believe that the show is a small step toward significant changes in Hollywood. According to Reese Witherspoon, Hollywood has been underestimating the potential of women by only casting them as wives and girlfriends. Through Big Little Lies, Reese Witherspoon, who’s also an active philanthropist, and Nicole Kidman want to bring in diverse women on the screen and view the show as a great opportunity to showcase the potential of talented women actors. She believes that it’s high time people started seeing women for what they really are, for the real-life experiences they go through and for the effort it takes to portray real characters. “I’m passionate (about producing) because things have to change. We have to start seeing women as they really are on the film” says Reese. “This piece is about women helping each other and women supporting each other, which was very important to Reese and I. I love that it’s about women coming together and making something happening very quickly, with friendship being the core of it”, added Nicole Kidman.
Big Little Lies is a 2014 novel written by Liane Moriarty. The book revolves around Jane, a single mother and her friends Madeline and Celeste. The novel illustrates the problems of the three women – Madeline being resentful that her daughter from her previous marriage is growing close to ex-husband’s new wife, Celeste being physically abused by her rich banker husband and Jane struggling with tracking down her guy, with whom she has had a drunken, violent one-night stand. HBO will be adapting the novel as a limited series.
Will Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman succeed in changing the perspective Hollywood industry has towards women? Will audience get to see women portraying richer, creative and in-depth character roles, rather than the usual wives and girlfriends role portrayal?