Selena Gomez to play Linda Ronstadt in biopic of groundbreaking singer

Pop singer and actress Selena Gomez has been cast as singer Linda Ronstadt in an upcoming biopic. The production team for the film, which is currently in pre-production, will be comprised of James Keach (who nabbed an Oscar for his efforts on the 2005 Johnny Cash biopic “Walk the Line”) and Ronstadt’s manager, John Boylan. Keach also produced the 2019 documentary “Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice.”

Ronstadt shot to meteoric fame in the U.S. during the 1970s and ’80s, embracing a sound that synthesized rock music with folk, country and Latin sounds. As The Guardian noted, Rondstadt was an anomaly of her time: the music industry was largely dominated by male rockstars. The songstress ultimately had six back-to-back platinum albums, 11 Grammys, as well as numerous chart-topping single hits. In 2011, Ronstadt retired from singing after being diagnosed with progressive supranuclear palsy. 

Gomez, like Ronstadt, is of Mexican descent. The “Only Murders In the Building” star is currently working on her fourth studio album. She teased her role in the biopic on Tuesday when she posted an image of Ronstadt’s 2013 memoir, “Simple Dreams,” to her Instagram Story. Ronstadt confirmed the casting when she reposted Variety’s article about the news to her Instagram Story, writing, “It all started with a simple dream.” Ronstadt subsequently reposted similar articles written by Rolling Stone and the Los Angeles Times. Further information about casting and a release date for the biopic is forthcoming.