Actor-director Lee Strasberg convinced Monroe not to take the part because of hints that Holly may be a call girl, which Strasberg felt could hurt Monroe's reputation (via The Vintage News). Monroe was one of Strasberg's students at the prestige Actor's Studio in New York starting in 1955. That year, Monroe went to New York City to avoid a part she didn't want in another movie that her studio, 20th Century Fox, was insisting she make.
At the time, in Hollywood's studio system, turning down a role was almost unheard of, because the studio had such control over its contracted actors. Monroe wanted to avoid being typecast as a bimbo and wanted to work with stronger scripts based on classic literature. In New York City, she immersed herself in the intellectual community and founded her own company, Marilyn Monroe Productions (via Marie Claire). Don Murray, who starred with Monroe in "Bus Stop" in 1956, said Monroe wanted to prove she was a serious actress, and he feels she succeeded (via Los Angeles Times).
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