Glenn Close wants to play Norma Desmond on the big screen

Glenn Close is currently focused on reprising her Tony-winning performance as faded silent star Norma Desmond in the stage musical Sunset Boulevard, which begins previews Thursday at Broadway’s Palace Theatre. But the six-time Academy Award nominee says she would dearly love to play the role in a movie version and admits part of the reason she first agreed to return to the role in London last year was to gauge if the musical might work as a film. “I did consciously think, Let’s do it again to see how people respond, to see if the story is still viable and exciting for people,” she recalls. “And that we certainly did in London.”

There have long been rumors that the musical — which is based on director Billy Wilder’s 1950 film of the same name — might find its way back to the big screen and composer Andrew Lloyd Webber apparently remains enthusiastic about the idea. “Oh, he’s all onboard,” says the actress, whose many film credits include Fatal Attraction, Dangerous Liaisons, and the upcoming horror film, The Girl with All the Gifts. Indeed, Close reveals that Webber has written additional music to be used in a future movie, including material which would accompany a scene from Wilder’s film in which Gloria Swanson’s Desmond plays cards with other actors whose careers had seen better days, including a playing-himself Buster Keaton. “Oh, the ‘waxworks,’ I love that scene,” says Close. “If the movie version is done, Andrew already has a tune for that scene.”

So, to borrow a famous line which appears in both Wilder’s film and Lloyd Webber’s musical, Glenn Close would be ready for her close-up? “I would,” she laughs. “With good lighting and a brilliant makeup artist!”