Last year, filming began on DUMPLIN', based on the book by Julie Murphy. This week, it was announced that in addition to hitting theaters later this year in limited release, it will also premiere on Netflix.
DUMPLIN' stars an overweight teen constantly overlooked by her former beauty pageant queen mother. Her mother now trains today's prospective beauty queens, but never considers her own daughter. Willowdean decides to enter the pageant in protest and shakes up her entire town.
The film stars Danielle MacDonald (Patti Cake$) as Willowdean Dickson, aka Dumplin'. Her mother, former Beauty Queen Rosie Dickson, is played by Jennifer Aniston (Friends). The cast includes Dover Cameron (Liv and Maddie, Disney's Descendants), Georgie Flores (Famous in Love), Harold Perrineau (Lost) Odeya Rush (Lady Bird).
The movie will have a stellar soundtrack, with Dolly Parton co-collaborating with Sia and Miranda Lambert to update some of her own catalogue as well as creating six new songs alongside Linda Perry. The first re-worked Parton song, "Here I Am," released today ahead of the film to get the buzz started. Here is the first song from DUMPLIN', from Parton and Sia:
Self-proclaimed fat girl Willowdean Dickson (dubbed "Dumplin'" by her former beauty queen mom) has always been at home in her own skin. Her thoughts on having the ultimate bikini body? Put a bikini on your body. With her all-American beauty best friend, Ellen, by her side, things have always worked...until Will takes a job at Harpy's, the local fast-food joint. There she meets Private School Bo, a hot former jock. Will isn't surprised to find herself attracted to Bo. But she is surprised when he seems to like her back.
Instead of finding new heights of self-assurance in her relationship with Bo, Will starts to doubt herself. So she sets out to take back her confidence by doing the most horrifying thing she can imagine: entering the Miss Clover City beauty pageant-along with several other unlikely candidates-to show the world that she deserves to be up there as much as any twiggy girl does. Along the way, she'll shock the hell out of Clover City-and maybe herself most of all.
With starry Texas nights, red candy suckers, Dolly Parton songs, and a wildly unforgettable heroine-Dumplin' is guaranteed to steal your heart.
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