Marilyn Monroe biopic "Blonde" tops nominations for Razzie Awards

On the eve of the Academy Awards ceremony in March, the winners (or losers) of the 43rd annual Razzie Awards will be revealed. Leading the pack with eight nominations is Netflix's controversial biopic about Marilyn Monroe, titled "Blonde," which received widespread criticism from both viewers and movie critics alike for exploitation of the late star.

"Blonde" received nominations for worst picture, worst remake, worst director for Andrew Dominik and worst screenplay. The film also received two nominations each in the categories of worst supporting actor and worst screen couple. 

Ironically, Ana de Armas, who depicted Marilyn Monroe in the film, received an Oscar nod for best actress when the Academy Award nominations were announced Tuesday morning.

Coming in second, with seven nominations, was stoner comedy "Good Mourning," staring musicians Machine Gun Kelly and Mod Sun. The Razzie Awards called the film, "laugh-free," adding that it achieved "the rare feat of scoring a perfect ZERO on Rotten Tomatoes."

The infamous award show isn't without controversy after one of this year's nominations for worst actress was originally given to 12-year-old Ryan Kiera Armstrong for her role in "Firestarter." The movie, which also stars Zac Efron, is based on a Stephen King novel of the same name.

Many took to social media to call out the Razzie Awards for singling out the young actress, who also starred in "It Chapter 2" and "Black Widow."

"Why put a kid at risk of increased bullying or worse?" tweeted Julian Hilliard, a child actor who starred in "WandaVision" and "Haunting of Hill House."

Filmmaker Joe Russo — who co-directed "Avengers: Endgame" with his brother Anthony Russo — tweeted that the award show had "sunk to a new low."

"If you're gonna continue denigrating people's hard work — which you shouldn't — at least target adults," Russo wrote. 

The Razzie Awards responded to the controversial nomination, telling CBS News, "The recent valid criticism of the choice of 11-year-old Armstrong as a nominee for one of our awards brought our attention to how insensitive we've been in this instance. As a result, we have removed Armstrong's name from the final ballot that our members will cast next month. We also believe a public apology is owed Ms. Armstrong, and wish to say we regret any hurt she experienced as a result of our choices."

In addition, organizers said that actors and filmmakers under the age of 18 will no longer be considered for the awards.

In early 2022, organizers rescinded a Razzie given to actor Bruce Willis following his diagnosis with the cognitive disorder aphasia. They had created a category for him called the worst performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 movie for his film "Cosmic Sin."

"If someone's medical condition is a factor in their decision making and/or their performance, we acknowledge that it is not appropriate to give them a Razzie," organizers said in a statement at the time.

Along with "Blonde" and "Good Mourning," the nominees for worst picture were Disney's "Pinocchio," "The King's Daughter" and "Morbius."

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• Hollywood
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