I'm almost done gawking at the fact that Cate Blanchett will star in a Lucille Ball biopic written by Aaron Sorkin. It's shocking. It's more like a Mad Lib to me than a news story, still.
The Sorkin element is actually the most surprising part. I guess he has some mansplainin' to do.
While we think about whether Blanchett has the comic chops to play Lucy Ricardo (since she certainly has the glamor factor necessary for the real Lucille Ball), let's offer up suggestions to play her castmates Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley.
Oscar Isaac as Desi Arnaz
Arnaz, who was almost six years younger than Ball, began “I Love Lucy” in his mid thirties. That's a perfect fit for Isaac, who's 36. Considering Isaac's, um, sharp tone in “Drive” and believable musicianship in “Inside Llewyn Davis,” I'd say he's the obvious frontrunner here.
Margo Martindale as Vivian Vance
Sure, Vivian Vance began “I Love Lucy” in her early forties. Sure, Margo Martindale is 64. But come on. We saw how Martindale could handle familial squabbles in “August Osage County” and I suspect that pluck would be essential in recalling the energy of Ethel Mertz.
JK Simmons as William Frawley
Considering that Vivian Vance hated Frawley, who was as cantankerous in real life as he was on the small screen, we'll need a thespian none for cantankerous energy for Fred. If you saw “Whiplash,” you may have noticed that JK Simmons is capable of rage. This could be the most perfect fit of all.
Hopefully the movie covers some of the stranger rumors about Lucille Ball and her costars — like that time J. Edgar Hoover may have dressed up as Vivian Vance to entertain a young Tim Gunn.