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Posted on 04/01/2026 12:16:56 PM PDT by nickcarraway
The 93-year-old Vertigo icon is making her feelings about Scandalous! abundantly clear — and casting, apparently, is just the beginning.
Summary
-Kim Novak slammed Sydney Sweeney’s casting in Scandalous!, the upcoming biopic about her 1950s affair with Sammy
-Davis Jr., saying she “would never have approved.”
-Novak’s beef isn’t just personal — she fears the film will reduce her complex romance with Davis to a purely sexual story because Sweeney “looks sexy all the time.”
-Sweeney says she’s “incredibly honored” to play Novak — a sentiment her subject clearly does not share.
Kim Novak would like the record to reflect that she did not sign off on this.
The Hollywood legend sat down with The Times of London on March 28 to share her unfiltered thoughts on Scandalous!, the upcoming biopic directed by Colman Domingo (Euphoria) that chronicles her taboo 1950s affair with Sammy Davis Jr. And when it comes to the casting of Sydney Sweeney in the role of Novak herself? The Vertigo star is decidedly not a fan.
“I would never have approved,” Novak said, adding that the Euphoria actress “sticks out so much above the waist.”
Novak went further, saying Sweeney is “totally wrong” to play her, and adding — perhaps most pointedly — that “she could never play me.” For someone who has generally kept a low profile in recent years, Novak is not exactly pulling punches.
And the casting critique isn’t just about looks. Novak has a larger, more substantive concern baked into it: she’s worried that Scandalous! is going to steamroll the genuine emotional complexity of her relationship with Davis in favor of something far more salacious.
“There’s no way it wouldn’t be a sexual relationship because Sydney Sweeney looks sexy all the time,” Novak told The Times. “She was totally wrong to play me.”
The subtext here is hard to miss. Novak wants the world to know that she and Davis — who met in 1956 as guests on The Steve Allen Show — had “so much in common,” and she fears the film will focus too much on the sexual dynamic between them rather than the depth of what they shared.
Kim Novak attends a cocktail party to announce the release of ‘The Kim Novak Collection’ DVD at The Essex House in Los Angeles, California on July 30, 2010. Photo Credit: INFevents.com
For context, their relationship was a genuine powder keg in 1950s America. Novak and Davis were at the peak of their star power when they met, and as rumors spread, the rampant racism in America threatened to derail both of their careers. The affair was reportedly broken up by Columbia Pictures boss Harry Cohn, who threatened Davis with mob violence over the interracial relationship. That’s a story with actual stakes — and Novak clearly doesn’t want it flattened into a sexed-up awards-bait romp.
Novak, who revealed her bipolar diagnosis in 2013, also offered Sweeney some unsolicited acting advice: “You can’t learn to be vulnerable. It’s a big asset to be a bipolar actor. No one feels joy or pain as much as someone who’s bipolar. The feelings are unstoppable.”
Los Angeles premiere of 'The Housemaid' Sydney Sweeney at the premiere of ‘The Housemaid’ at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on December 15, 2025. Photo Credit: Dave Starbuck/Future Image/Cover Images
Sweeney, for her part, has been nothing but gracious about the role — perhaps too gracious, given how this is going. She told People in October 2025 that she’s “incredibly honored” to lead the film, adding, “I think her story is still very relevant today in that she dealt with Hollywood and scrutiny with her relationships and her own private life and the control of her image.”
When asked by The Hollywood Reporter if she’d met Novak, Sweeney didn’t answer directly, but noted: “Colman and her have a really beautiful relationship. They’ve been talking. We connected them, so it’s been really cool.”
Cool! Very cool! Definitely not awkward at all!
Domingo, making his feature directorial debut with Scandalous!, has described the film as a “fractured love story.” He previously told Deadline they planned to shoot in summer 2025, adding: “And then hopefully we’ll make a beautiful, sweet film that’s really about the possibility of love, but under many eyes, trying to have privacy, trying to have love, trying to have a life.”
It’s worth noting this is not the first time Novak has pushed back on the project. As early as 2025, when the film was first announced, she questioned its very title, rejecting the idea that her relationship with Davis could be reduced to something “scandalous.” The woman has been consistent, if nothing else.
Sweeney previously paid tribute to Novak at the 2025 Met Gala, wearing a black Miu Miu dress similar to one Novak wore in 1967’s The Legend of Lylah Clare. A sweet gesture, sure — but apparently not sweet enough to win over the original.
Scandalous! stars David Jonsson (Alien: Romulus) as Sammy Davis Jr. Reps for Sweeney have not commented publicly.
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Those relationships within my family ... the children have suffered, and are suffering.
If no kids are involved, or might be involved, fine. Marry a frickin’ garden gnome.
I’m sorry that what you’ve personally observed in your family has been upsetting to you. It’s not that way in every family.
Why don’t they have a black actress play Novak? They do this in a lot of other movies.
You’re not sorry, and I’m not upset. Just disappointed.
So, you’re a mind reader?
“Sweeney “looks sexy all the time.””
I have the same problem. It’s a heavy burden.
I’m surprised they didn’t cast a black tranny.
So bipolar disorder is better than not. And Hitchcock picked her for her talent. And Sammy Davis picked her for her character.
Got it.
I'll cut her some slack and assume that she is the subject matter expert on which actress can play her being an actress. That may be all she is an expert at but it is something.
It's not only very fashionable, it's often accompanied by a slack jaw -- mouth hanging open as if they can't breathe otherwise. They look stupid or drugged. I see this a lot in real life, not sure how common it is in reel life.
Heh, I had to parse that a bit!
“...Mansfield’s IQ was probably 80 points higher than Loren’s...”
At least her assets were!
Unless it's The Jolson Story. To Hell and Back wasn't bad either.
Kim Novak was never anything more than a celebratory beauty, she wasn’t unattractive but my loins never noticed her.
I think Ms. Sweeney is plenty cute though so I’ll side with the hot one.
Sweeney began as a child actress in 2009. You can see in childhood photos that she was born with those lips.
Hooray!
That means, since that's my age as well, I no longer have to keep all my opinions to myself...
Snicker...
Noval may be worried that Sweeney will play her almost exactly as she was. And that would be too revealing and too guilt producing.
I meant Mansfield’s IQ - yikes! Jane’s IQ was reported at either 149 or as high as 160. Not too shabby. Nor were her fun pillows.
“ It’s not only very fashionable, it’s often accompanied by a slack jaw — mouth hanging open as if they can’t breathe otherwise”
If only she had a nose ring and some fake long eyelashes, said no man ever.
When i was single i had a few rules including:
1- no married women
2- no minor women.
3- no women who had butts bigger than their boobs...
Yeah, Kim Novak is correct. Sydney Sweeney is "totally wrong" to play her in 'Scandalous!' - that role can only be filled by a black transvestite.
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