Why Marilyn Monroe's Last Movie Was So Controversial
Marilyn Monroe's final movie, The Misfits, was also one of the most controversial of her career, but viewers may not know the reasons why. She was only 36 when she died in 1962 of an overdose of barbiturates at her home, ruled a probable suicide. The iconic star has since become a symbol of cinema, classic Hollywood, and even glamor. If Monroe had lived, she would have risen to even bigger heights — and likely appeared in an Alfred Hitchcock movie, given his penchant for blondes. Off-screen, her marriages to Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller, as well as her looks and ditsy-blonde demeanor, were well-publicized by the press. The controversy of The Misfits was also well-known upon its release in 1961, but details are less familiar to audiences today.
Desiring acclaim and respect at the time, Monroe took a role in John Huston’s neo-Western drama about an aging rancher who debates selling his horse herd to the glue factory for extra cash. Monroe plays the rancher’s girlfriend, Roslyn, who is disgusted by his actions. The actress was frequently late to set during production and often showed up drunk or high on medication. The movie's realistic and emotional plot apparently took a lot out of her. Meanwhile, Huston did not get along with Monroe and wanted her off the picture. She was to next appear in director George Cukor's movie Something's Got to Give, but due to her premature death, The Misfits wound up being her final picture.
Related: The Terrible Western That Almost Made Clint Eastwood Quit Acting
The Misfits has been critiqued and studied in the decades after its release because of its controversial significance in film history. Monroe’s co-star Clark Gable, a fellow screen legend best known for his role as Rhett Butler in
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