2/29/2012
Gwyneth Paltrow, Reese Witherspoon, Cameron Diaz, Andy Samberg, and Beyonce to star in musical 'One Hit Wonders'
Ryan Murphy. Great with TV. Bad with movies. At least that's been the history as far as I'm concerned, with the Glee creator finding hits on the small screen with stuff you'd never expect to fly. Nip/Tuck, really? How was that on so damn long? But on the big screen he just hasn't been able to put it together, with junk like Running with Scissors or that overlong vacation we had to go on with Julia Roberts in Eat Pray Love.
One thing Murphy hasn't done is tackle a feature that puts to use his obvious eye for musicals and ability to attract big name talent. He's lined up Reese Witherspoon, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Cameron Diaz to star in One Hit Wonders, about three 1990s pop singers who decide to form a supergroup to jumpstart their flagging careers. The idea came about over dinner between the four, which I'm guessing included alcohol of some sort? Definitely alcohol was involved in this idea. Beyonce and SNL's Andy Samberg are part of the cast as well, with Samberg and his Lonely Island crew providing the music. That means it'll be batsh*t silly.
Paltrow will also co-produce the film, which makes sense considering she's appeared on Glee numerous times at this point. She's been known to belt out a mean tune, also, most recently in Country Strong. Her singing was really the only halfway decent thing about that country music disaster. Beyonce is looking to jump back into the acting game after the birth of her and Jay-Z's metahuman celebri-child. It still remains to be seen if she'll ever star in Clint Eastwood's remake of A Star is Born, which was delayed due to the pregnancy.
This should have smash hit written all over it, but with the exception of Diaz none of the actors involved are bankable stars right now. Murphy is going to have to be a big part of the marketing, targeting as much of the Glee audience as possible. It's unclear when production could begin, but it will be some time after Murphy completes his adaptation of The Normal Heart. [Deadline]