Jessica Chastain Set To Play Country Music Star Tammy Wynette in New Limited Series
Jessica Chastain is set to play country music star Tammy Wynette in an upcoming limited TV series and it seems like a great role for the actress to take on. Chastain always delivers fantastic performances in the projects she stars in, so I’m confident that she’ll be great in this.
The series is titled George & Tammy and it’s based on the book, The Three of Us: Growing Up with Tammy and George, written by the couple’s daughter, Georgette Jones.
The series will chronicle the country music power couple, “whose relationship inspired songs such as ‘We’re Gonna Hold On’ and ‘Golden Ring.’ Wynette was married to George Jones for six years between 1969 and 1975.” Here’s a description from the book:
The marriage of George Jones and Tammy Wynette was hailed as a union made in honky-tonk heaven. And when little Tamala Georgette Jones was born in 1970, she was considered country music’s heir apparent.
For the first four years of her life, Georgette had two adoring parents who showed her off at every opportunity, and between her parents, grandparents, older sisters, and cheering fans, Georgette’s feet seldom hit the ground.
But as in every fairy tale, dark forces were just around the corner. Her parents fought, and George drank. George and Tammy divorced when Georgette was four, and it would be years before she understood just what that meant.
The Three of Us is an honest and heartfelt look into the life of a broken family living in the glare of the public spotlight. Like so many of her generation, Georgette had to make sense of loving two parents who couldn’t love each other. With never-before-told stories about George and Tammy, it recounts Tammy’s descent into prescription pill addiction, her dependence on her fifth husband, George Richey, and her untimely death at the age of fifty-five. Georgette opens up about her broken relationship with her father and what it took for them to come back together. Lastly, Georgette discusses the ups and downs of her adult life: failed marriages, illness, an arrest, and now, an unexpected but thrilling career as a musician.
The Three of Us is a story of both extreme privilege and great trials, of larger-than-life people with larger-than-life problems. Rich in country music history, it contains twists and turns, highs and lows, but in the end, it stands as an intensely moving tale of love, loss, heartbreak, and what it means to be a family.
The series was created by Abe Sylvia, a co-exec producer on Netflix’s Dead to Me. He will executive produce alongside Andrew Lazar (American Sniper), Josh Brolin and Chastain. Sylvia said in a statement:
“I am humbled to bring this incredible story to life with the breadth it deserves and that the Charter platforms allow. Tammy Wynette is an American icon, and I can think of no one better to illuminate the woman behind the legend than Jessica Chastain. After having the honor of penning The Eyes of Tammy Faye for Freckle Films and Searchlight, I so look forward to another collaboration with her. This has indeed been a passion project for Andrew, Josh and me – and we are so grateful to our partners Katherine Pope, Keith Cox and David Glasser for tirelessly championing our labor of love.”
Katherine Pope, head of Spectrum Originals said:
“I first read Abe’s feature script a few years ago and couldn’t get it out of my head — the examination of human frailty and redemption was so unexpected, given the glitz and glamour of the subject matter. We all thought we knew who Tammy Wynette was, but there is so much more to her that we never saw. Jessica brings her incredible depth of intelligence, empathy and strength to peel back all the layers of this country superstar. It’s an honor to work with this dream team — all the producers and our partners at 101 Studios and Paramount Network — we can’t wait to bring this incredible series to our viewers.”
Keith Cox, President of ViacomCBS’s Entertainment & Youth Studios, went on to say:
“I’ve been a massive fan of George & Tammy’s iconic music since I was a kid, leading me to chase this incredible script by Abe for years. It’s a dream come true to have Jessica at the forefront of the complex tale behind Tammy Wynette. We are thrilled to share this series about two legends with the world on ViacomCBS forthcoming streaming service and Paramount Network.”
David Glasser, CEO of 101 Studios added:
“We are thrilled to be able to bring this story to life. This project has been a labor of love for everyone involved, especially Andrew Lazar and Jessica Chastain. We first heard about it nearly seven years ago when it was pitched as a feature film. After Abe Sylvia’s success in television with Nurse Jackie and Dead to Me, we thought George & Tammy could also be re-envisioned as a series. With Abe at the helm of the project, Andrew producing, and Jessica attached to star, we can finally bring George and Tammy’s story to the screen.”
The series is set to premiere on Spectrum as an original series for subscribers. After a nine-month exclusive run, it will be released on the unnamed ViacomCBS streamer and Paramount Network.
Source: Deadline