Lucille Ball’s Daughter Confirms Her Opinion on the Nicole Kidman Casting Controversy

Lucille Ball is an iconic figure. Her acting and comedy career have been a massive influence on theater, TV, and film, and on top of that, she was a very early female trailblazer for women in the entertainment industry as the first woman to head a Hollywood studio, which produced several other iconic shows, including Star Trek and Mission: Impossible. Therefore, it only makes sense that such an impressive woman would be the subject of a biopic. And she will be, in an upcoming series starring Nicole Kidman. However, some internet users have been skeptical — after all, Kidman doesn’t look all that similar to Ball. This is why Ball’s own daughter, Lucie Arnaz, weighed in on the controversy. What does Lucie Arnaz think about Kidman playing her mother? Is she surprised the studio didn’t go for someone who looked more like Lucille Ball? Or does she have more positive feelings?

Lucille Ball is a major figure in Hollywood history

You’ve probably seen, or at least heard of, I Love Lucy. This sitcom showed both the life of a young couple and the world of New York City show business, and represented many television firsts (the first ensemble cast, the first show shot on film in front of a studio audience, and an early show to depict both a mixed-ethnicity couple and a pregnancy.) But Lucille Ball did much more — starting work in the 1920s as a model and dancer, before in the 30s landing supporting roles in comedy films. A 1940s radio comedy show gave her the idea for I Love Lucy, and the rest is history!

Even after I Love Lucy, Ball continued to be a trailblazer, working in the business area of media and working as a studio head, and serving as a mentor to many other actors and comedians like Carol Burnett and Carole Cook. On top of this, even in the middle of the 20th century, Ball considered herself a friend to the LGBT community, and today is still seen as an icon that many queer people look up to.

People are surprised that Nicole Kidman was chosen to play Lucille Ball

Recently, it was announced that Aaron Sorkin of The West Wing fame would be producing a television drama series about Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, entitled Being the Ricardos. However, people were surprised when Nicole Kidman was announced to be portraying Ball. After all, Ball’s appearance is pretty iconic and recognizable, and Kidman, though an excellent actress herself, doesn’t look super similar.

However, Ball’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz, wasn’t bothered by this. According to Yahoo! Entertainment, Arnaz was happy to see an actress chosen for performance chops rather than appearance:

I mean, nobody was cast because they look exactly like somebody. They were cast because they’re spectacular performers, actors, and they can capture the basic essence of what has been written in this script.

Additionally, while Arnaz had a few minor qualms, she was very pleased when she watched Kidman acting on set – a good sign for what’s to come!

Not much is known about the show yet

While we know the main cast (Javier Bardem will be joining Kidman as Desi Arnaz, and Nina Arianda as Vivian Vance,) not a lot of information has come out yet. According to Arnaz, Sorkin took some creative liberties, but she’s still happy with the overall product. We also know that Amazon Studios are involved, so it’s likely that the drama will be available on Amazon Prime. Other than that, we just have to wait and see what happens!