Photo Credit: Paramount Network
After her breakout role as Cher in 1995’s Clueless, could Alicia Silverstone be poised to create another iconic role with American Woman?
The dramedy, premiering on the Paramount Network, stars Silverstone as Bonnie Nolan. Bonnie is a typical 1970s trophy wife who loses her idyllic Beverly Hills life after she discovers her husband cheating on her and makes the radical (for the time) move of divorcing him.
Left alone with two kids to raise, and facing challenges like the rise of feminism, sexual liberation and new relationships, Bonnie needs to take control of her life with the help of her friends.
Here’s what you need to know before the show premieres on June 7.
LOS ANGELES, CA – MAY 31: Kyle Richards attends Premiere Of Paramount Network’s “American Woman” – Arrivals at Chateau Marmont on May 31, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Presley Ann/Getty Images)
The show is based on the life of one of the Real Housewives
The series is inspired by the childhood of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Kyle Richards, and her experiences growing up in the 1970s with a single mother.
She describes the series as a “love letter” to her mother, Kathleen Richards, who was left penniless and alone after her husband cheated on her and abandoned the family.
“At the time, my mother was suddenly single,” she told Megyn Kelly Today, as reported by People.
“She didn’t know about money or what they had – she didn’t even have a checkbook.”
Kyle will also be serving as executive producer for the series.
Photo Credit: Paramount Network
American Woman is all about feminism
Although the series takes place around the second wave of feminism in the 1970s, in the midst of the sexual revolution, it was still a tough time to be a woman.
By taking the unconventional action of divorcing her husband, Bonnie has to figure out how to be a single mother who has to provide for her family.
“She’s a trailblazer of her time,” says Silverstone of her character in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.
Speaking to Yahoo News, Silverstone explained Bonnie in more depth.
"She has no skills, no money, and at the time, you couldn’t even get a loan out without a man. So she’s taking a huge leap. I appreciate that bravery and being able to live your truth… Most women would put their heads down and pretend this didn’t happen. But she says ‘Oh no you don’t’ and she breaks free. I think that’s brave, especially during that time."
LOS ANGELES, CA – MAY 31: Mena Suvari, Alicia Silverstone and Jennifer Bartels attend Premiere Of Paramount Network’s “American Woman” – Arrivals at Chateau Marmont on May 31, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Presley Ann/Getty Images)
Mena Suvari and Jennifer Bartels co-star on the show
The cast of American Woman is rounded out by Mena Suvari (American Beauty, American Pie), Jennifer Bartels (What Happened Last Night), and Cheyenne Jackson (American Horror Story, 30 Rock).
Suvari and Bartels will star as Bonnie’s best friends Kathleen and Diana.
Kathleen is a Texas transplant focused on having fun and burning through her trust fund, but who secretly longs for traditional married life.
“She’s so caught up in image and appearances and struggling because she’s not married yet,” she said in an interview with OUT.
Bartels stars as Diana, a career woman struggling to break through the ‘old boys’ mentality of the 1970s business world.
“In the pilot I’m a very buttoned-up, kind of ‘independent but struggling to find her voice as working woman’,” she explains in an interview with News Observer.
“[By] the end of the series you’re like ‘Wow!’ – it was even surprising for an actor for me to read through it.”
Photo Credit: Paramount Network
The show features some incredible attention to detail
We can expect a smorgasbord of enviable ’70s looks and gorgeous, intricate sets and picture perfect details, right down to the last smattering of exposed chest hair.
However, don’t expect the 1970s clichés of bell bottoms and high waisted hotpants.
Costume designer Judy Gellman sourced labels authentic to the time, like Halston, Pierre Cardin, and Diane von Furstenberg.
In an interview with Variety, Gellman revealed that the costumes even included a dress originally worn by 1970s supermodel Twiggy, and a vintage Yves Saint Laurent.
“I didn’t want to have to be like ‘Hello, here’s all the iconic looks from the ’70s,” she says.
“We’re checking them off so that you can see we’re showing you the period accurately.”
According to a recent profile in the New York Times, Silverstone also requested that her costumes contained no wool, silk, or leather (though apparently vintage clothes are exempt from this rule).
NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 05: Kyle Richards and Jennifer Bartels take part in Jenny McCarthy’s ‘Inner Circle’ series on her SiriusXM show ‘The Jenny McCarthy Show’ with the cast of American Woman on June 5, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Cindy Ord/Getty Images for SiriusXM)
American Woman and NowThis joined forces for a ‘female-driven edit-a-thon’ on Wikipedia
In order to highlight the show’s focus on feminism, Richards, Bartels, and the American Woman cast joined a panel of experts and female Wikipedia editors to create 18 new articles, 40 edited pages and the addition of 10k words to existing pieces.
The edit-a-thon was created after it was brought to light that only 16% of editors on Wikipedia identify as female.
The panel including Women in Tech founder arena Bahad, NASA engineer Nagin Cox, playwright and actor Anne Berkowitz, and NowThis managing editor Versha Sharma.
The Drum reports that senior vice president of consumer marketing for Paramount Network and TV Land Anhelo Reyes states, “The edit-a-thon has provided the opportunity to drive change and amplify voices that have long been minimized in critical spaces such as tech and media.”
Where to watch American Woman
American Woman premieres on June 7, 10 pm ET/PT on the Paramount Network. Series one will run for twelve episodes. Check out the trailer above.