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Susan Sarandon To Play Marilyn Monroe’s Mother in Lifetime Miniseries

Asylum Entertainment, who previously delivered June Carter's Cash's biography to Lifetime, are teaming up with the network for another starry biopic; Marilyn. The show will take inspiration from the life of one of cinema's greatest pin-ups, Marilyn Monroe, and has now landed its first cast member in Susan Sarandon.

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Asylum Entertainment, who previously delivered June Carter’s Cash’s biography to Lifetime, are teaming up with the network for another starry biopic; Marilyn. The show will take inspiration from the life of one of cinema’s greatest pin-ups, Marilyn Monroe, and has now landed its first cast member in Susan Sarandon.

Set to be a four-hour miniseries, the show will be based on Randy Taraborrelli’s book, The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe and written by 24‘s Stephen Kronish. Since its publication in 2010, Taraborrelli’s tome has been considered the definitive work on Monroe’s private life for its particular exploration of her drug issues and tumultuous relationship with her mother. While we’ve no word as yet on who the network have eyed for the titular role, Sarandon has signed on to play the actress’s notorious parent, Gladys Mortenson.

According to THR, Mortensen is described as “a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, who is the product of a mother who committed suicide as a result of her own mental illness, and a father who died of syphilitic insanity. Frequently delusional, sometimes violent, Gladys sexually adventurous in her youth but taught her daughter that sex should be avoided at all costs. Deeply devoted to Christian Science, she urges Marilyn to reject her reliance on drugs and that her salvation will be achieved by returning to the tenets of the faith.”

This absolutely sounds like a walk in the park for Sarandon, whose lengthy career has seen her turn her hand to a range of characters. While she may be most rrecognizablefor her film work, as of late she’s made several TV cameos, namely on The Big C and Mike and Molly. Now that the actress has committed to another small screen project, this could mark a change in the tide for Sarandon that we’re very much looking forward to.

Before Marilyn hits Lifetime in 2015, check out the official synopsis for the show below and let us know what you think. Do we need another Marilyn biopic?

Marilyn is both the personification of sex, whose first marriage ironically collapses because of her frigidity, and a fragile artist who seeks the approval and protection of men. But after tumultuous marriages with Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller, she realizes she has the strength to stand on her own. She becomes the face and voice of an era, yet wants most of all to be someone’s mother and someone’s little girl. She’s the Marilyn you haven’t seen before, the artist who, by masking the truth with an image, gives her greatest performance.