David O. Russell to Direct the Linda Ronstadt Biopic Starring Selena Gomez
Five-time Oscar-nominated screenwriter and director David O. Russell (The Fighter, Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, Amsterdam) has signed on to helm the biopic about singer-songwriter Linda Ronstadt. We recently reported that Only Murders in the Building star and two-time Emmy nominee Selena Gomez will take on the leading role.
The music biopic is currently in pre-production, with producers including James Keach, who produced the 2019 documentary Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice, and Ronstadt’s manager, John Boylan.
Gomez teased her involvement in the biopic earlier this week by posting a picture of Ronstadt’s 2013 memoir “Simple Dreams” on her Instagram story. No other casting has been announced.
Ronstadt is a country, rock ‘n’ roll and Latin music legend known for her 1970s albums Heart Like a Wheel and Simple Dreams. Throughout her career she has released 29 studio albums, won 11 Grammys, and was honored by both the Recording Academy and the Latin Recording Academy with Lifetime Achievement Awards. In 2014, Ronstadt was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Ronstadt’s 2019 doc, directed by Rob Epstein (The Times of Harvey Milk) and Jeffrey Friedman (The Celluloid Closet), chronicles the artist’s nearly five-decade career. In 2011, Ronstadt announced her retirement, later revealing she is no longer able to sing due to her progressive supranuclear palsy.
Russell has a reputation for being a “difficult” director, but he also makes some of my very favorite movies, so this will probably turn out great.
via: Variety