Only Murders in the Building star and pop singer Selena Gomez has found her next role. Revealed on Gomez’s Instagram and confirmed by Rolling Stone, Gomez will play singer Linda Ronstadt in an upcoming biopic based on her memoir Simple Dreams.
Ronstadt is an American-Mexican singer who began her career in the 1960s and has sung for a variety of different musical genres. From folk, country, rock, Latin, opera and more, Ronstadt has quite a diverse discography that has earned her 11 Grammy awards, two Country Music awards, three American Music Awards and several other accolades that also include an Emmy, Golden Globe and Tony Award. In 20914 she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and has been given a few lifetime achievement awards for her decades of music. She has been retired since 2012 after being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
The untitled biopic has begun pre-production with James Keach, who directed the 2020 Ronstadt documentary Linda and the Mockingbirds, and Ronstadt’s manager John Boylan producing.
Despite her retirement, Ronstadt’s music has remained popular and had something of a resurgence lately in a manner similar to Kate Bush’s after her song ‘Running Up That Hill’ was prominent in the fourth season of Stranger Things. Ronstadt’s 1970 romantic hit ‘Long Long Time’ was used in the third episode of HBO’s video game adaptation of The Last of Us, which featured Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett as Bill and Frank, a gay couple who survive the Cordyceps pandemic and live in a fenced off town after Bill’s doomsday preparations.
The episode has often been cited as the season’s best episode with praise for Offerman and Bartlett’s performance, the former of whom recently won a Creative Arts Emmy for Outstanding Guest Actor while writer Craig Mazin and director Peter Hoar have been nominated in their respective categories at this weekend’s upcoming Emmys ceremony. Ronstadt’s hit played a significant role in the relationship between Bill and Frank.
We’ll have to wait for news on who will direct or write the script as well as other casting announcements given the wide array of musicians Ronstadt collaborated with throughout her career.
What do you think of Selena Gomez as Linda Ronstadt? Let us know on our social channels at @flickeringmyth…
Ricky Church – Follow me on Twitter for more movie news and nerd talk.
Originally published January 12, 2024. Updated January 13, 2024.
