Angelyne is ready to make her debut.
Peacock’s limited series about the L.A. billboard legend, which is based on a 2017 Hollywood Reporter feature by Gary Baum and was announced before the NBCUniversal streamer even launched, has finally set a release date. The five-episode series will release in full on May 19.
And in the date announcement, star Emmy Rossum shows off more of her transformation into the mysterious, real-life character.
“You really want to know my story, the story of my life?” asks Rossum in the first-look teaser (below) as Angelyne, as she speeds away in her famous pink Corvette. “The truth is, I’m something that you have to experience.”
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Rossum plays the self-created pop culture icon, whose real name was uncovered in Baum’s exposé to be Renee Goldberg. Her story of reinventing herself as a blonde bombshell revolutionized the concept of being famous simply for being famous, as she became known for her billboards in Los Angeles and driving around Hollywood in her pink Corvette.
According to the show’s description, Angelyne is about the “glow-in-the-dark queen of the universe and L.A.’s original billboard icon from the ’80s, who infiltrated pop culture and rose to fame when a series of billboards began to appear around L.A. featuring her signature curvier figure.” The series is described as also being about fame, identity, survival, lingerie, men, women, women teasing men, men obsessed with women, West Hollywood, crystals and even UFOs.
“As a society broadening our understanding of identity, this story plays with large questions. Are we defined by the historical facts of our life? Or can we define ourselves? To self-actualize, to embrace whoever we are on the inside and live whatever truth feels most accurate. When everyone’s experience of reality and truth is personal, can there ever be one true story?” says Rossum, posing questions about her work on the role in a statement released Wednesday.
She continues, “I’ve spent the better part of four years thinking, living and breathing this project. I love Angelyne. She’s as if Marilyn Monroe got into an easy bake oven with a ’80s punk Barbie Doll, and a dose of new age spirituality. She’s a trailblazer, a hustler, a visionary, the original influencer, a living-breathing piece of art. Here is a little taste of the show. I hope you fall in love with her magic.”
The series also stars Martin Freeman (Fargo), Alex Karpovsky (Girls), Hamish Linklater (Midnight Mass), Charlie Rowe (Rocketman), Lukas Gage (Euphoria), Michael Angarano (This Is Us), Molly Ephraim (The Front Runner) and David Krumholtz (The Deuce).
“Angelyne is an homage to the real Angelyne, who became a cultural icon in Los Angeles,” adds showrunner Allison Miller. “This isn’t the true story of Angelyne. It’s not a straightforward biopic. It’s a story inspired by everything Angelyne represents and so it’s a magical story, a hopeful story, a story about becoming the person you were meant to be and believing in your own inner strength to manifest your dreams. It’s a story about Los Angeles and everything the city means to people who move here and to people who dream about moving here.”
Miller is also executive producer, along with directors Lucy Tcherniak and Matt Spicer. Rossum and husband Sam Esmail teamed with The Hollywood Reporter to adapt the investigative article. Executive producers are Rossum, via her Composition 8 company; Esmail, via his UCP-based Esmail Corp; and Chad Hamilton, via Anonymous Content; and THR. Baum serves as a consultant on the series, which is produced by UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group.
