Actress Zooey Deschanel Tapped To Play Loretta Lynn On Broadway
Loretta Lynn has plans to take her life story to Broadway, and she's tapped a "new girl" to play the starring role. The country-music legend announced Thursday night that she'd like Zooey Deschanel to portray her in a musical adaptation of Coal Miner's Daughter.
Lynn made the offer during a Grand Ole Opry show at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, inviting Deschanel up on stage to sing her autobiographical hit with her.
"There's a little girl backstage that's going to do the play of Coal Miner's Daughter on Broadway," Lynn told the audience. "Zooey, where you at, honey?"
The announcement was similar to the fashion in which Lynn revealed that actress Sissy Spacek would play her in the original 1980 film. Back in 1979, Lynn called Spacek up on the Opry stage and declared the news, surprising the crowd present.
Deschanel, who is the producer and star of Fox's comedy New Girl--as well as a Grammy-nominated vocalist--was more than happy to join Lynn on stage. "This is a great honor for me," she said, calling Lynn "my hero."
There are no dates set yet for work to begin on the Broadway adaptation; however, star Broadway producers Fox Theatricals and Scott Sanders Productions are attached to the project.
Although some may wonder if Deschanel, a Los Angeles native, is a stretch to play a rural Kentucky-bred singer, the 32-year-old actress has an impressive range of musical experience under her belt. In addition to her film vocal work ranging from pop standards (in 2003's Elf) to folky children's tunes (2011's Winnie The Pooh), she's one-half of alt-country/indie duo She & Him. The act has been together since 2006, releasing two studio albums and one volume of Christmas music to date.
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