Step aside Timothée Chalamet as Bob Dylan, there’s a new iconic singer biopic in the works with its lead star transforming onstage into a rocker.
Shailene Woodley has confirmed that she will be singing in character as Janis Joplin for the previously announced musical biopic. The project was announced earlier this year and received a $2.5 million tax credit from the California Film Commission. Woodley is leading the feature and also producing, with production set to take place across 30 days.
During an appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” Woodley detailed how the project has been in the works for almost a decade.
“I’m really excited,” Woodley said. “We’ve been working on it for seven years now, and she’s [Joplin] such a groovy chick, man. She really brought the light to this planet in a singular way, and it has been so much fun to dive into her story.”
Linda Perry is also serving as the music producer on the film and taught Woodley how to unlock her singing voice to portray Joplin.
“[Perry] is a legend. She’s incredible,” Woodley said. “She really pushed me to figure out how to find my own voice. Because I was like, ‘I can’t sing like Janis.’ And she put me in a lot of uncomfortable situations where she’s like, ‘Sing. Show up here on this date,’ to a massive empty warehouse with a full band. She’s like, ‘Have fun. Sing some songs.’”
Woodley continued, “I was like, ‘I don’t know how to sing anything. Like, Christmas carols? What do I sing?’”
Woodley also confirmed that the whole feature will include real singing from the actors.
“We’re going to sing everything. I’m going to sing,” she said.
The “Big Little Lies” alum further teased that Season 3 of the HBO series is still in the works and has been “for a while,” with Nicole Kidman leading the charge. According to Woodley, it’s all about the ensemble cast aligning their respective schedules. The series stars Woodley, Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, and Zoe Kravitz.
Kidman announced that Season 3 was in development in June 2024, saying to Vanity Fair that even author Liane Moriarty is writing a new book for the season to be based on.
“We’re moving fast and furious,” Kidman said at the time. “And Liane is delivering the book. And we’re in good shape. So the rest is…We need to shut up because there’s this whole thing that you should never talk about something until you’ve done it. Because if you talk about doing it, it’s the dopamine hit of doing it. You feel like you’ve done it. It’s a scientific study.”
Watch Woodley on “The Tonight Show” below.
