Daisy Edgar-Joneswill play legendary singer-songwriter,Carole King, inBeautiful, a movie adaptation of the Broadway productionBeautiful: The Carole KingMusical. The musical will be helmed by Oscar-nomineeLisa Cholodenko.Variety reportsthat the long-in-the-works adaptation is moving forward; Sony acquired the rights to the musical, as well as King’s songs, seven years ago.
King herself approves of Edgar-Jones' casting, saying “Daisy has a spirit and energy that I recognized as myself when I was younger. She’s a tremendous talent and I know she’s going to give a great performance.” King is one of the most successful female songwriters of all time, having written or co-written over 100 Billboard hits; she also achieved success performing her own songs with the chart-topping 1971 albumTapestry.Beautiful, the Broadway production based on her life and set to a soundtrack of her songs, ran for five years, and netted Jessie Mueller a Tony for her lead performance. This won’t be the first time King’s life has been adapted for the screen; the 1996Allison AndersfilmGrace of My Heart, starringIlleana Douglas, was loosely based on King’s life and career.
English actor Edgar-Jones starred in the British TV seriesCold FeetandWar of the Worlds, before breaking out worldwide in the acclaimed miniseriesNormal People. 2022 has been a banner year for her, as she starred in the true crime miniseriesUnder the Banner of Heaven, the black comedy thrillerFresh, and the surprise Southern Gothic hitWhere the Crawdads Sing. Cholodenko made her feature debut with the acclaimedAlly Sheedyindie dramaHighArt; she subsequently directedLaurelCanyonandCavedwellerbefore her biggest mainstream success, the 2010 sleeper hitThe Kids Are All Right. That film, in whichAnnette BeningandJulianne Mooreplay a lesbian couple who meet the biological father (Mark Ruffalo) of their two children, was a hit with audiences and critics, earning Cholodenko Oscar nominations for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay. Since then, Cholodenko has directed for a number of TV series, includingOliveKitteridge,Unbelievable, andThe Girl From Plainville;Beautifulwill be her return to feature directing.
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Cholodenko andStuart Blumberg, with whom she co-wroteThe Kids Are All Right, did a pass onBeautiful’s script.Tom HanksandGary Goetzmanof Playtone will produce the film withPaul Blake, the stage show’s producer.Sherry Kondor,Christine Russell,Steven Shareshian, andMike Bosnerwill executive produce.
