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To realistically portray the late Anna Nicole Smith, actress Agnes Bruckner was faced with a challenge.
She had to go from a B bra cup size to a DD to play the star in the Lifetime biopic The Anna Nicole Story, but she wasn't willing to go under the surgeon's knife to achieve the look.
So the filmmakers turned to Oscar-winning special effects makeup artist Greg Cannom, who designed state-of-the art prosthetic breasts that were applied during four-hour-long fitting sessions to the 27-year-old each morning prior to shooting.
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Doubling her assets: Agnes Bruckner, pictured in February in 2013, went from a B-cup to a DD with the help of prosthetics to play Anna Nicole Smith in a new Lifetime biopic
Make-up artists Todd McIntosh and David De Leon were tasked with 'painstakingly' attaching the prosthetic breasts to Bruckner's chest, according to the New York Post.
'David and I would apply the breasts in tandem,' McIntosh said of the appendages, which were made of gel-filled silicone that warmed up and had to be applied one at a time.
'This created the freedom for them to move and jiggle more like flesh,' he said. 'It would have been impossible to do the pole dancing or fill out some of the outfits without this innovation.'
Top-class job: The authentic-looking fake breasts were created by three-time Academy winning special effects makeup artist Greg Cannom
Takes work: The 27-year-old had to endure four-hour-long makeup sessions each morning to apply the breasts, hair and makeup
The real thing: But the centerfold paid the price for seemingly wanting to be the next Marilyn Monroe
For Bruckner, wearing the prosthetic breasts was a surreal experience.
'They couldn't have been any more real looking,' she said. 'It was so strange, wearing them for the first time. I was standing there "topless", but it was really like I had a shirt on because there was nothing exposed of my own.'
'I'd look at myself, and I kept thinking, "Oh, my God, could you imagine if they really were that big?"', added the actress, best known for her recurring roles on television series like 24 and Private Practice, and films like Murder by Numbers.
Surreal experience: Bruckner described the first time wearing the prosthetics as 'so strange,' but praised them for being 'real-looking'
But getting them one each morning was quite the ordeal, along with hair extensions, makeup and fake eyelashes.
'[Bruckner] was a trouper in all capital letters,' said McIntosh. '[Her] makeup routine took us four hours with three people.'
He said the morning started with her hair and makeup, followed by the breasts, which involved 'positioning, blending, then laying in colours.'
'Painstaking' process: The breasts had to be applied one at a time which 'created the freedom for them to move and jiggle,' said makeup artists Todd McIntosh
Toasty: The fake breasts, made of gel-filled silicone, warmed up when applied to the skin to they would get 'quite comfortable,' said McIntosh
'During that process, our third makeup artist Amber Crowe would begin the process of covering Agnes' eight tattoos.
'Then we would mix and match jobs,' said McIntosh. 'I'd work on tattoos, and David would repair the beauty makeup that had been on for hours already.'
The makeup artists referenced 'hundreds' of photos of Anna Nicole to recreate her iconic look.
'We got to do everything,' said De Leon. 'It's really a wonderful opportunity for a makeup artist.'
Did their homework: The makeup artists said they referenced 'hundreds' of pictures of the late star to recreate her different looks
The first trailer for the film was released earlier this month and offers a glimpse of the famed Playboy centerfold and reality star's life.
A glossy, beautiful series of shots are featured in the trailer to a sultry cover of the song Fame, portraying the much-publicized tabloid starlet as the modern Marilyn Monroe she always wanted to be.
More glamorous after death: Actress Agnes Bruckner plays Anna Nicole Smith in 'The Anna Nicole Story,' a biopic about the centerfold's life, and looks beautiful in the trailer for the film released on Monday
Centerfold: Anna Nicole Smith first rose to prominence as a centerfold in Playboy, ultimately being named as the Playmate of the Year
Troubled beauty: Smith had a troubled life before and after she became famous
Exactly like her, from a distance: In certain shots, lead actress Agnes Bruckner looks exactly like Anna Nicole Smith
Similar but better: In others, Bruckner looks similar but arguably much better
Directed by acclaimed American Psycho director Mary Herron, the biopic charts the quick rise and slow but steady fall of the East Texas stripper who became Playboy's Playmate of the Year in 1993 and then married billionaire oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall, who was 62 years her senior.
When he died 15 months later, Smith began a court battle over his estate that would last the rest of her life and go all the way to the United States Supreme Court over the hundreds of millions she believed she was due in inheritance.
The cast of the melodramatic tale about the centerfold's troubled life is about as good as a cable television movie gets.
The octogenarian oil tycoon will be played by Academy Award-winning actor Martin Landau and his son, E. Pierce Marshall who battles Smith in court, by The Princess Bride actor Cary Elwes.
Also starring in the film is Oscar-nominated Sideways actress Virginia Madsen, playing Anna Nicole's mother Virgie Arthur, and Saving Private Ryan star Adam Goldberg, who plays Smith's long-time lawyer and secret lover Howard K. Stern.
Downward spiral: The biopic chronicles Smith's quick rise to fame and slow but steady fall
Began as a stripper: Before she was discovered by Playboy, Smith was a stripper in East Texas, as the film reflects
Glamorous drunk: There any many shots in the trailer of Smith drinking, some in a glamorous fashion
Drug problems: A lot of reference will be made to Smith's mixing of prescription drugs with alcohol
Substance problems: Smith's substance abuse problems took control of her later in life
Influence on her son: Anna Nicole's son appears to have a major part in the film, leading up to his death at age 20, shortly before Smith herself died
As her hundreds of millions in inheritance stalled in court battles and her acting career never got off the ground, Smith found herself in financial straights.
Noting the success of celeb-reality shows like The Osbournes, the ex-Guess model offered up both her public and private life to the E! Network reality series The Anna Nicole Show.
The series received high ratings in it's first few episodes, but was critically panned and ultimately canceled after two seasons.
In this time, Anna Nicole's on-screen personality became erratic, both in the reality series and on various talk show appearances, giving real credence to rumors that she had a substance abuse problem.
Secret lover: also starring in the film is Saving Private Ryan's Adam Goldberg, who plays Smith's longtime attorney and secret lover
Underwater: The film appears to delve into Smith's psyche through beautiful cinematography
Constantly in court: The centerfold was constantly in court fighting for hundreds of millions of dollars in inheritance from her billionaire second husband
Madness: Anna Nicole had a number of tragic events occur later in her life
Clown face: The film also features Anna Nicole Smith's infamous clown face, in which she was videotaped eight months pregnant in 2006, stoned and babbling incoherently
Sadness: Six moths before her own death, Smith's 20-year-old son died in her hospital room
In 2006, Smith announced she was pregnant with her second child and gave birth to a baby girl, Danielynn Hope Marshall Stern in early September.
Three days after the birth of her daughter, Anna Nicole's 20-year-old son Daniel Smith died of a drug overdose in her hospital room.
Emotionally devastated by the death, Smith herself died of a drug overdose less than six months later, creating a subsequent media frenzy over who was the true father of her infant daughter.
While the facts of Smith's real life seem to be relatively desperate, sad and harsh, her biopic, judging by the trailer at least, presents her with a glossy sheen of glamour and class.
The Anna Nicole Story debuts on Saturday, June 29 on Lifetime.
Controversial marriage: Smith's marriage to billionaire J. Howard Marshall, who was 62 tears her senior, was a constant source of controversy
Glamorous moments: Anna Nicole Smith was a Guess model for a short period of time, one of the highlights of her career
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