Dolly Parton has expressed interest in Kristin Chenoweth playing the country music superstar in a biopic or Broadway musical.
Parton appeared on Mr. Nashville Talks to promote her new book (she co-authored with James Patterson) and album, Run Rose Run, and the conversation turned to a potential biopic or stage play chronicling the singer, songwriter, and philanthropist’s life and decades-long career.
“I’ve been talking about doing my Broadway musical and we were really, really way out ahead of that, and then COVID hit and that changed my mind about a whole lot of things,” Parton told Ferguson. “I do intend someday to be on Broadway, but I’m thinking now that I might do my life story as a feature… Maybe possibly even a musical feature, so we’re in talks about that.”
But who would be up to the task? Parton has at least one person in mind: “I love Kristin Chenoweth,” Parton said. “She’s just absolutely fantastic. Years and years ago, when I was going to do the Broadway musical—I never can get it how I want it, but I’m still working on it. But I thought she’d be an ideal person to do that.”
Chenoweth appears to already have been preparing for the role. A long-time fan, the actress and singer performed Parton’s “Jolene” during an appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show in 2021, exclaiming “Dolly, hurry up I’m ready.”
In addition to the aforementioned album and book, Parton just released a new perfume “Dolly: Scent From Above,” and respectfully declined her nomination to be inducted into the Rock ‘N’ Roll Hall Of Fame, expressing that she doesn’t feel she has ever recorded a true rock record. Chicago producer Steve Albini even offered to make that record happen. Even if the biopic or musical comes to fruition, it appears that Parton’s career is far from over.
