Making a movie is usually a mess, but the 1957 production of The Prince and the Showgirl was a total train wreck. Everyone knows the myth of Marilyn Monroe, the blonde bombshell who couldn't remember a line to save her life. Then there’s the My Week with Marilyn movie, the 2011 film starring Michelle Williams that tried to peel back the curtain on what happened when an American goddess collided with British acting royalty. It’s a weirdly charming film, but if you look at the actual history, the reality was way more tense than the movie lets on.
Honestly, the clash between Marilyn Monroe and Sir Laurence Olivier wasn't just about ego. It was a war of philosophies. Olivier was the ultimate "technical" actor—he wanted you to hit your mark, say the words, and go home. Marilyn was deep into "The Method." She had Paula Strasberg whispering in her ear between every take, telling her to find her inner truth while Olivier was busy checking his watch and wondering why his co-star was three hours late.
Michelle Williams did an incredible job capturing that breathy, fragile energy in the My Week with Marilyn movie, but the real-life Colin Clark—the young third assistant director who wrote the memoirs the film is based on—was a bit of a controversial figure himself. Some people think he exaggerated his "romance" with Marilyn. Others say he was the only person on that set who actually treated her like a human being instead of a problem to be solved.
The Pinewood Studios Pressure Cooker
When Marilyn arrived in England in 1956, she wasn't just a star; she was a corporation. She had just formed Marilyn Monroe Productions. This was her big move to prove she was more than just a pin-up. She chose a play by Terence Rattigan, The Sleeping Prince, and she chose Olivier to direct and co-star. On paper? Brilliance. In practice? A nightmare.
Olivier was aging and felt his career was slipping. He thought starring opposite the world's most famous woman would make him relevant again. Instead, he ended up feeling like her babysitter. He once told her to "try and be sexy," which is basically the worst thing you could ever say to Marilyn Monroe. She wanted to be an artist. He wanted a puppet.
The My Week with Marilyn movie captures this friction perfectly. Kenneth Branagh plays Olivier with this simmering, polite British rage that feels so authentic to the era. But the film glosses over just how much the British press was hounding her. It wasn't just a quiet week in the countryside. It was a circus. Marilyn was struggling with her marriage to Arthur Miller, her addiction to barbiturates, and an intense fear of failure.
Why the "Method" Drove Everyone Crazy
If you’ve ever worked with someone who needs a ten-minute meditation before they can answer an email, you’ve got a tiny taste of what the British crew felt.
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- Marilyn wouldn't step onto the set until she felt "ready."
- Paula Strasberg, her acting coach, had more power than the director.
- Olivier would do 30 takes of his own performance while Marilyn was still in her dressing room.
The crew grew to resent her. They were used to the rigid, disciplined world of British filmmaking where you show up on time and do your job. To them, Marilyn wasn't a tortured soul; she was a spoiled American. The My Week with Marilyn movie shows Colin Clark as the bridge between these two worlds. He was the "gofer" who ended up being her confidant.
Fact vs. Fiction: Did the "Week" Actually Happen?
This is where things get tricky. Colin Clark wrote two books: The Prince, the Showgirl and Me and later, My Week with Marilyn. The first one was a diary. The second one—the one with the skinny-dipping and the romantic escapades—didn't come out until decades later.
Some historians, like Sarah Churchwell, have pointed out that Clark’s account of their private week together is... let’s say, highly stylized. There is no doubt they were friendly. There is no doubt he helped her navigate the stresses of the set. But did she really fall for a 23-year-old assistant director while her husband was in the next room?
The My Week with Marilyn movie leans hard into the romance because, well, that’s what makes a good movie. It paints a picture of a lonely woman looking for someone who doesn't want anything from her. Whether it’s 100% true or not almost doesn’t matter to the legacy of the film. It captures the feeling of Marilyn—the way she could turn "it" on for the camera and then collapse into a puddle of insecurity the second the lights went down.
Michelle Williams and the Impossible Task
Playing Marilyn is a death trap for actresses. You either do a bad impersonation or you get lost in the costume. Williams didn't look exactly like her, but she got the walk. The "Marilyn" walk wasn't natural; it was a character Monroe invented.
In the My Week with Marilyn movie, there’s a scene where she’s walking through a crowd and she asks Colin, "Should I be her?" Then she changes her posture, her face brightens, and suddenly the crowd goes wild. That is a real thing that happened. People who knew Marilyn said she could literally turn her fame on and off like a light switch.
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The Real Legacy of The Prince and the Showgirl
Despite the misery on set, the final movie isn't half bad. It’s a bit stiff, sure. But Marilyn is luminous in it. She outshines Olivier in every single frame, which likely infuriated him even more. He was acting; she was just being.
That’s the core of the My Week with Marilyn movie. It’s an exploration of that "being."
If you're watching the film today, you have to realize that by 1956, Marilyn was already unraveling. She was desperately trying to get pregnant (she suffered a miscarriage shortly after filming), her marriage to Miller was already showing cracks because she found his diary where he complained about her, and she was being watched by the FBI. The "week" she spent with Colin Clark, if it happened as he described, was likely the only moment of peace she had in years.
A Masterclass in Supporting Performances
While Williams and Branagh get the headlines, the My Week with Marilyn movie succeeds because of its periphery characters.
- Judi Dench as Dame Sybil Thorndike is the only person who is kind to Marilyn on set.
- Toby Jones as publicist Arthur P. Jacobs shows the absolute grind of managing a star.
- Eddie Redmayne as Colin Clark plays the "audience surrogate" perfectly—he's us, wide-eyed and terrified of breaking this fragile person.
The film manages to avoid being a "cradle to grave" biopic, which is why it works. It’s a snapshot. A polaroid.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Cinephiles
If you want to truly understand the context of the My Week with Marilyn movie, don't just stop at the credits. You have to see the layers of the real history to appreciate what the film is trying to do.
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Watch the source material.
Go watch The Prince and the Showgirl. It’s available on most streaming platforms. Look for the moments where Marilyn looks like she’s about to cry—they aren't always in the script. Notice how Olivier seems to be overacting to compensate for her stillness. It's fascinating.
Read the diaries.
If you can find a copy of The Prince, the Showgirl and Me (the original diary), read it alongside the later My Week with Marilyn book. You’ll see how a story grows and changes over time. It tells you a lot about how we mythologize celebrities.
Understand the "Method."
Research Lee Strasberg and the Actors Studio. Understanding what Marilyn was trying to achieve makes her "difficult" behavior on set seem a lot more like a desperate attempt at professional growth and a lot less like a diva tantrum.
Check the Arthur Miller perspective.
Read Miller’s play After the Fall. It’s a brutal, thinly veiled look at his marriage to Marilyn. It provides the "other side" of the story that the My Week with Marilyn movie mostly leaves out.
The My Week with Marilyn movie remains a staple of 21st-century biographical cinema because it doesn't try to explain everything. It just shows you a girl, a boy, and the impossible weight of being an icon. Marilyn Monroe died just six years after the events of this film. Seeing her through the eyes of someone who (claims to have) loved her for a week is perhaps the most merciful way to remember her.
Next Steps for Deep Diving into Marilyn's History:
- Visit the British Film Institute (BFI) archives online to see original production stills from the 1956 shoot; the contrast between the staged photos and the candid shots is revealing.
- Listen to the "You Must Remember This" podcast episode on Marilyn Monroe, specifically the "Marilyn and Miller" segment, for a factual breakdown of her mental state during the London trip.
- Compare the 2011 film to the 2022 film Blonde; notice how My Week with Marilyn chooses empathy and charm while Blonde focuses on trauma, helping you identify which "version" of Marilyn the public prefers to consume.