Principal photography began on 4 October 2010 at Pinewood Studios. Filming took place at Saltwood Castle, White Waltham Airfield and on locations in and around London. Curtis also used the same studio in which Monroe shot The Prince and the Showgirl in 1956. My Week with Marilyn had its world premiere at the New York Film Festival on 9 October 2011 and was shown at the Mill Valley Film Festival two days later. The film was released in the United States on 23 November 2011 and will be released on 25 November in the United Kingdom.
In the summer of 1956, Colin Clark works as an assistant on the British set of The Prince and the Showgirl, which stars Laurence Olivier and Marilyn Monroe, who is also on honeymoon with her new husband, playwright Arthur Miller. When Miller leaves the country, Clark introduces Monroe to British life and they spend a week together, during which time she escapes from her Hollywood routine and the pressures of work.
In August 2009, Scarlett Johansson became the frontrunner to play Marilyn Monroe in the film. Kate Hudson, Amy Adams and Michelle Williams were also named as potential candidates for Monroe. Three months later, it was revealed that Williams was in talks for the role. Williams was the only actress that producers met with during casting, despite the other actresses being considered for the role. Williams told Adam Green of Vogue that the notion of playing Monroe was daunting, but as she finished reading the script, she knew she wanted the role.
The actress then spent six months reading biographies, diaries, letters, poems, and notes about and from Monroe. She also looked at photographs, watched her films and listened to recordings. Williams had to gain weight for the role and she worked with a choreographer to help perfect Monroe's walk.
More than forty actors auditioned for the role of Clark, among them was James Jagger, who began talks with producers in May 2010. In September, it was announced that Eddie Redmayne had been cast as Clark. Parfitt told the Daily Mail that finding an actor for the role had been difficult. He said "It's a devilishly tricky part to find the right person for because Colin went to Eton, studied at Oxford and flew for the RAF." That same month, it was also announced that Harry Potter actress Emma Watson had been cast in the small role of wardrobe assistant, Lucy. Watson was scheduled to spend only a few days on set shooting her scenes to prevent her studies at Brown University from being interrupted. Kenneth Branagh began talks with producers for the role of Laurence Olivier in July 2010 after Ralph Fiennes had to pull out to direct his adaptation of Coriolanus. Branagh was later cast in the role.
Dominic Cooper was given the role of Milton H. Greene, a photographer and Monroe's business partner. Of Greene, Cooper said "He was quite an old man, but they had a very close relationship. I think Marilyn felt very supported by him in the beginning. But ultimately he became her agent and business partner, which is rather a lot." Cooper filmed his scenes in between his work on Captain America: The First Avenger. Catherine Zeta-Jones was approached by executives at The Weinstein Company to appear in the film as the actress Vivien Leigh. Zeta-Jones turned down the role as she did not want to spend a week or more away from her husband, Michael Douglas, who was being treated for throat cancer. Curtis and the producers began auditioning other actresses and they later cast Julia Ormond in the role. Ormond's casting was announced at the same time as Dougray Scott's, who portrays Arthur Miller. Derek Jacobi was cast as Sir Owen Morshead, the royal librarian at Windsor Castle, Philip Jackson plays Monroe's private detective and Judi Dench plays Sybil Thorndike. Zoë Wanamaker is Paula Strasberg, the actress' acting consultant and Richard Clifford was cast as Richard Wattis, the actor who played a courtier in The Prince and the Showgirl. The film also stars Toby Jones, Philip Jackson, Geraldine Somerville and Simon Russell Beale. It was announced on 8 October 2010, that casting on the film had been completed.
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