Academy Award-winning actress Natalie Portman is set to assume the role of another great woman of American history: Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Portman, who is nominated for an Oscar for her portrayal of iconic first lady Jackie Kennedy, discussed the upcoming role on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
The film’s script was written by the nephew of Ginsburg’s late husband Martin Ginsburg. It takes place in 1971 when Ginsburg, then a 38-year-old volunteer attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, was working on a case regarding gender discrimination. However, in this particular case, it was a man who felt he was being discriminated against.
“She…fought for him in the Supreme Court, which was all male justices at the time and got them to be like, 'Hey, this isn’t fair,'” Portman explains. “He wasn't getting a tax exemption for taking care of his mother where a woman would because of stereotypical gender roles.”
In addition to portraying American female icons on the big screen, Portman advocates for women in the film industry. She insisted on a female director for the Ginsburg biopic, tentatively titled On the Basis of Sex, and Marielle Heller, known for her film Diary of a Teenage Girl, was eventually selected.
Keep up the great work, Natalie.