At the time, it was perhaps one of the most unexpected pairings in Hollywood—the highly respected Shakespearean actor Laurence Olivier and the blonde bombshell Marilyn Monroe. Together they starred in the 1957 movie The Prince and the Showgirl, a comedy adapted from the play The Sleeping Prince by Terence Rattigan.
The road to The Prince and the Showgirl was a long one, and once the movie finally starting coming together, the two actors felt their differences—in everything.
In 1955, Marilyn stopped reporting for work at Twentieth Century-Fox, the studio that held her contract. Unhappy with the movies Fox wanted her to star in, Marilyn began requesting better parts for herself. She also became unsatisfied with the financial terms of her contract. When she had signed the long-term contract as an unknown starlet, the wages were welcome. She became more famous than perhaps anyone had anticipated, however, and along with the success came financial rewards—for the studio. She didn’t think it was fair that Fox was making considerable money off her name when she received no additional benefits.
After her successful strike, Marilyn was awarded more money and, most importantly, the right to approve her scripts, directors and cinematographers. Additionally, she set up her own production company, Marilyn Monroe Productions (MMP), with business partner Milton Greene, a move that would allow her to produce her own movies.
When the time came to select a script for her own company, she recalled a play that had been recommended to her a few years earlier. The Sleeping Prince, which had been performed in 1953 in London with Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh in the starring roles.
After purchasing the film rights for The Sleeping Prince, MMP approached Laurence Olivier about reprising the role he had created on stage. Olivier agreed, but only on the condition that he co-produce and direct. After back-and-forth negotiations, those terms were agreed upon.
Plans for the movie were announced with considerable fanfare at a press conference held at the Plaza Hotel in New York on February 9, 1956. The stars spoke highly of one another to the press. “She is a brilliant comedienne, and therefore an extremely good actress,” Olivier said at the press conference. “She has the cunning gift of being able to suggest one minute that she is the naughtiest little thing, and the next minute that she is beautifully dumb and innocent.”
Marilyn called Olivier, “my idol.” Later, she caused a sensation during the event when one of the spaghetti straps on her dress snapped, effectively stealing the spotlight from Laurence Olivier.
During that summer, Milton Greene hammered out the final details of production, which included ironing out the agreement between MMP and Laurence Olivier’s production company. He was also responsible for arranging for a large group of Americans to be flown to England to work on the film, a move that was not looked upon kindly by Britain.
Finally, Marilyn and Arthur Miller arrived in London just weeks after their July wedding; Laurence Olivier, along with his wife Vivien Leigh, met the American couple at the airport—along with a virtual army of police for security, photographers, journalists and fans. Production on the movie ran from August 7 to November 17 and from the start, life on the set was rocky. The relationship between Marilyn Monroe and Laurence was perhaps destined to fail.
Once free from the suffocating atmosphere at Twentieth Century-Fox, Marilyn moved to New York to study at the prestigious Actors Studio with Lee Strasberg. Under him, Marilyn began practicing what is known as The Method style of acting. The Method, which requires actors to draw upon their own pasts and emotions to tap into their roles, was in stark contrast to how Olivier approached the craft. He believed that acting technique was all that was needed. Marilyn and Olivier were immediately at odds with one another and things were tense between the two of them before cameras even started to roll. It only disintegrated from there.
Their differences were exacerbated by the presence of Paula Strasberg, Lee Strasberg’s wife, who coached Marilyn on set while Lee ran the Actors Studio in New York. While Olivier tried to direct Marilyn using his style of acting, Paula Strasberg would immediately give her student conflicting advice, saying things like, “Think of Frank Sinatra and Coca-Cola.” As a result, Marilyn often became flustered, causing her to forget her lines.
Olivier was frustrated at the use of The Method on his set, and quickly grew to resent the presence of Paula Strasberg, whom he felt was undermining his direction and interfering with production.
Further causing Marilyn anguish was the presence of Vivien Leigh on the set for a few days at one point. Leigh, who had originated the role of American showgirl Elsie Marina on the London stage, let it be known she disapproved of Marilyn’s acting.
Things on the set were miserable for everyone, not least of all Marilyn. The two principal players in the film were no longer speaking; this was complicated by the fact that one of these principals was also the director. At one point Lee Strasberg flew in from New York to iron things out. Unimpressed, Laurence Olivier had him removed from the set. At one point Marilyn’s psychoanalyst, Dr. Margaret Hohenberg, arrived from America to help alleviate Marilyn’s stress, to little avail.
Things came to a head on set when an exasperated Olivier instructed Marilyn to just “be sexy.” To Marilyn, who had worked so hard to shed her sex symbol image, this was the ultimate insult. Infuriated, she walked off the set. Consequently, Olivier believed Marilyn to be petulant and amateurish.
In addition to their differing acting styles, it had become clear that their approaches to everything was worlds apart. And, like the stars they were, their egos clashed. Marilyn began to doubt Olivier’s dedication to the film, believing he was only there for the money. She feared he was trying to steal the spotlight from her; in fairness, she often accused her co-stars of trying to upstage her.
In retaliation for his gruff behavior, Marilyn began sarcastically referring to Olivier as “Mr. Sir.” Olivier had no patience for Marilyn and would recall later that she was a “thoroughly ill-mannered and rude girl.” The Prince and the Showgirl set, it seems, wasn’t big enough for the two of them.
It got worse. Arthur Miller and Milton Greene were soon wrestling for control over Marilyn. Milton, who has supported Marilyn emotionally and financially during her strike and during the process to set up their company, resented Arthur Miller’s sudden intrusion. Miller, who had significant financial worries at the time, wanted to be part of Marilyn Monroe Productions. Marilyn, in the middle of her husband and business partner, began to distrust Milton.
A disagreement erupted between Milton Greene and Laurence Olivier when Olivier determined that Greene should be stripped of his executive producer title. Greene objected. (Ultimately, Greene’s name appeared in the first few prints of the film, then mysteriously disappeared.)
Arthur Miller resented the Strasbergs’ role in Marilyn’s life and believed them to be toxic. As for the newlyweds themselves, Marilyn and Arthur had a significant falling out when she accidentally discovered Miller’s journal—open to a page in which he wrote about his disappointment in her behavior.
Finally, to the great relief of everyone, production wrapped—under budget. Olivier was quoted as saying that he was never so happy for a film to be completed.
The movie finally premiered at Radio City Music Hall on June 13, 1957, to mixed reviews. Remarkably, none of the tensions from set of The Prince and the Showgirl appear on film. In the movie Marilyn is witty and bright, holding her own with Laurence Olivier.
Because of all the turmoil on the set, history has often overlooked the positive aspects of the picture. First and foremost, let’s remember that Marilyn Monroe, who had been written off as a dumb sex symbol by so many, actually produced a movie with her own production company. And because she was an independent contractor, as opposed to under contract to a studio, she netted 10 percent of the movie’s profits. All this was practically non-existent in the 1950s. It was a huge leap for all actors in Hollywood—but especially for women.
Finally, let’s remember that this woman had the courage to hire the century’s most renowned and respected actor—Laurence Olivier. Not many in her shoes would have done the same. For all the attention that Marilyn’s behavior on the set gets, let’s not forget that Olivier wasn’t always a pleasant person to be around, either. To her credit, Marilyn stood up to him. And it’s also important to point out that while Olivier didn’t always treat Marilyn with respect, it wasn’t just a matter of two actors. Olivier seems to forget that this woman, whom he spoke so ill of, was also his boss.
Unfortunately, Marilyn didn’t live long enough to be able to reflect on her experience filming The Prince and the Showgirl. Olivier, on the other hand, did and with time and age his feelings softened.
“No one had such a look of unconscious wisdom, and her personality was strong on the screen,” he said. “She gave a star performance. Maybe I was tetchy with Marilyn and with myself, because I felt my career was in a rut. I was 50. What a happy memory it would have been if Marilyn had made me feel 20 years younger. She was quite wonderful, the best of all.”
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