Oh, My! Renée Zellweger Is Unrecognizable as Judy Garland in First Look from Upcoming Biopic
Renée Zellweger is known for her ability to shape-shift for different roles, but her latest transformation is worth a double-take.
A first look photo from Judy, a biopic about Judy Garland, shows the actress completely transformed into the screen legend.
In the shot, Zellweger channels the Wizard of Oz star and renowned singer in a black dress with floral details and dark locks. Zellweger — who won an Oscar for her work in Cold Mountain — gazes upwards as she sings into a microphone.
According to Variety, the biopic by Pathé and Calamity Films will follow Garland’s final sold-out concerts in London in 1968, despite her exhaustion and deteriorating health. The movie, based on a script written by The Crown‘s Tom Edge, will also focus on Garland’s management problems and her various relationships, Variety reported.
Production of the film is currently underway in London.
#JUDY starts principal photography in London today, starring Academy Award winner, Renée Zellweger as Judy Garland!#judygarland #reneezellweger #london #thetalkofthetown #jessiebuckley #finnwittrock #michaelgambon #rupertgoold #pathe #calamityfilms #bbcfilms #ingenious pic.twitter.com/VJAnMRuzKV
— Judy (@JudyGarlandFilm) March 19, 2018
In addition to Zellweger in the title role, the film will also star Finn Wittrock as Garland’s fifth husband Mickey Deans, and Michael Gambon as manager Bernard Delfont. Bella Ramsey will portray Garland’s daughter Lorna Luft while Gemma-Leah Devereux will play a young Liza Minnelli.
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British stage director Rupert Goold will direct.
Garland died of an accidental barbiturate overdose months after the tour ended in June 1969 in London. She was 47.
Deans and Garland were only married for three months when she died. The marriage was her fifth.
In 2017, PEOPLE excerpted Judy and I: My Life with Judy Garland, which was crafted from notes that Sid Luft, Garland’s third husband, left unfinished before his 2005 death.
Among the revelations from Luft was that Garland’s life had been dominated by a constant pressure to be “camera-slim.” Luft wrote, “Most of her teen and adult life, she had been on either Benzedrine or a diet or both.”
Of Garland’s death, Luft — from whom she was then long divorced — wrote, “She was totally burned out. Destroyed. I couldn’t save her.”
Judy is expected to released later this year.
