Deadline is reporting that Jennifer Aniston has signed on to star in the music-driven comedy Dumplin’, which is slated to go into production this summer under director Anne Fletcher (The Proposal, 27 Dresses).
Dumplin’ follows a confident, plus-sized teen called Willowdean, who tries to spite her mom (Aniston) – a former beauty pageant queen now running the local Texas pageant – by enlisting some friends to take part. What starts as an impulsive one-day protest snowballs as Will inadvertently becomes the inspiration for a ragtag group of teenage outcasts joining the pageant. Given her “insider” perspective on her mother’s pageant world she had long scorned, Will gains new respect for her mom who, in turn, comes to admire a daughter she’s finally able to see, and love, for who she really is.
The film has been scripted by Kristin Hahn, who served as producer on the Aniston-headlined Cake, and is based upon Julie Murphy’s acclaimed YA novel of the same name.
