These actors have hidden talents! Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the movies about famous singers where the actors actually performed the songs themselves.
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00:00 "Well, I'm packed pretty tight in here tonight. I'm looking for a dolly, you'll see me right."
00:06 Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the movies about famous
00:11 singers where the actors actually perform the songs themselves.
00:14 "So what are we gonna sing, Johnny? You got me out here, is that where your plan ends?"
00:18 Number 10. The Buddy Holly Story
00:21 Charting the early life, rise to fame, and tragic ending of 50s rock and roll idol Buddy Holly,
00:27 the filmmakers of this 1978 biopic opted for realism.
00:30 "My love, all my kissing, you don't know what you can missin'
00:36 Star Gary Busey and his on-screen bandmates sang and played all their numbers live during the
00:44 shoot. Although Holly was a small guy, his wailing and growling style left some big shoes to fill.
00:50 "Baby, how I love you, baby, baby, you know I love you, baby, you know I love you from day to day"
01:02 Tackling some of rock and roll's most popular songs, Busey was a revelation in the role. He
01:07 was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, and the music won the Best Adaptation Score Oscar.
01:13 "I'm gonna show you how it gets, you're gonna feel it. Hey, you're gonna hear it too."
01:19 "I'm gonna show you how it gets, you're gonna feel it. Hey, you're gonna feel it too."
01:22 Number 9. Cadillac Records
01:24 Based on the luminaries who made up the real-life chess records,
01:27 this 2008 biopic boasted an impressive cast.
01:30 "You were born for good luck, that you'll see. I got $700, don't you worry, yeah"
01:44 Although not every single song was sung by the actors, plenty of them actually were.
01:49 It makes sense, as most of the actors were well-known vocalists and musicians before then.
01:53 "The night was young and the room was gold, so we both decided to take the stroll.
01:59 Can you imagine the way I felt? I couldn't think faster than I said, "I felt"
02:06 Though not exact soundalikes, most deaf, Beyonce and Jeffrey Wright in their respective roles as
02:11 Chuck Berry, Etta James and Muddy Waters revive the classic tracks these artists made famous.
02:16 The movie itself got mixed reviews for its lack of originality,
02:20 but the soundtrack was often its most celebrated component.
02:23 "And life is like a song"
02:29 Number 8. The Runaways
02:31 In this 2010 biopic, Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning played Joan Jett and Sherry Curry of the
02:36 late 70s band The Runaways. "I'm a one-bound shelf, living where it's wet. Your mama says
02:44 you're going straight to hell" Both actresses were at a crossroads in their careers, and playing two
02:50 trailblazing, boundary-smashing women of rock gave both stars a chance to cut their teeth on
02:54 more mature roles. What's more is that their vocals were used in many scenes,
02:59 including on the band's biggest hit, Cherry Bomb.
03:01 "I'll give you something to live for. Have ya, grab ya, tell your sores. Hello,
03:09 daddy. Hello, ma. I'm your cherry bomb"
03:15 Both Joan Jett and Sherry Curry themselves were reportedly impressed with their on-screen
03:19 counterparts. With its driving soundtrack and the charisma of its leads, The Runaways is a
03:24 rousing tribute to late 70s punk rock seediness. "Wild beaches, it's all too wet.
03:31 Have fun summer and then"
03:36 Number 7. The Doors
03:38 Val Kilmer auditioned for a role in this wild retelling of the 60s rock band's brief rise and
03:43 fall from stardom by producing a tape of him singing various songs by The Doors. It worked
03:48 almost too well. Director Oliver Stone decided to have him perform the songs in the movie himself.
03:53 "Try to run, try to hide, break all truth to the other side"
03:59 Kilmer's stamina was constantly put to the test with multiple takes of concert scenes
04:03 as the energetic, hard-partying frontman Jim Morrison. His hard work paid off.
04:07 The movie is a wild ride, made more immersive and intimate by the inclusion of the actor's voice,
04:18 allowing him to fully inhabit the role. Even critics who weren't exactly in love
04:23 with the film felt his performance alone was worth the price of admission.
04:26 Number 6. Judy
04:52 Despite already giving one Oscar-winning turn, Renee Zellweger was hesitant to take this role.
04:56 That's understandable. Judy Garland is only one of the 20th century's greatest entertainers.
05:01 No big deal. But the fact that Zellweger did her own singing makes it an even more
05:05 courageous decision. "I'll face the unknown, I'll build a world of my own"
05:21 Zellweger didn't seek to impersonate Garland, but opted instead to build the voice around
05:26 her view of Judy as a character. Playing the legendary entertainer in her later years,
05:30 her voice is worn and slightly damaged, but nonetheless powerful and full of emotion.
05:36 Zellweger tears through Garland's most famous songs, winning a second Oscar.
05:40 "I'm with you always, come rain or shine"
05:53 Number 5. Rocketman
06:08 This biopic takes a more unconventional approach. Yes, it still covers the ups,
06:12 downs, triumphs, and failures of Sir Elton John from his childhood in Britain to his superstardom,
06:17 but it also does it in a highly stylized, fantastical way.
06:21 Taron Egerton takes the role of the piano-playing pop icon, and sings all the songs himself.
06:26 "He's a panda wizard, he's scared to turn you on, a panda wizard to watch you be the boy"
06:37 Pairing surreal imagery with Egerton's powerhouse performance,
06:41 Rocketman finds a novel way to track a famed performer's battles with addiction,
06:45 betrayal, and the pressures of fame. The movie's premiere showings were met with standing ovations,
06:51 and it would receive several nominations and awards for both Egerton and the soundtrack.
06:55 "And don't you know I'm still standing better than I ever did"
07:02 "Looking like a true survivor, feeling like a little kid"
07:11 Number 4. Elvis
07:13 Director Baz Luhrmann is known for his frantic and jarring approach.
07:22 So, when he announced he was helming an Elvis Presley biopic,
07:25 people knew this wasn't going to be a straightforward kind of movie. People were
07:28 even more intrigued and maybe even skeptical when it was announced that several actors would be singing.
07:33 "Well, you may go to college, you may go to school, you may have a pink Cadillac, but don't you think nobody's real"
07:42 Performers Cody Smit-McPhee, Yola, and Shanka Dukere sang the songs of the famous vocalists
07:47 they played. But it was star Austin Butler who stole the show as the king. Although his voice
07:53 is mixed with the real Elvis's in his older years, much of his performances as a younger
07:57 man were performed solely by Butler. "Well, since my baby left me, well I found a new place to dwell"
08:06 Number 3. Lady Sings the Blues
08:10 The most ironic thing about this one is that the star of the movie and its subject sound
08:19 almost nothing alike. Diana Ross's lilting and pristine coup would never be mistaken for Billie
08:25 Holiday's resonant rasp. Yet Ross's performance is so believable that it doesn't even matter.
08:30 "If I should take an ocean to jump into the ocean, ain't nobody's business if I do"
08:41 While the 2021 biopic starring Andra Day found an actress who could match Billie Holiday's sound,
08:46 Lady Sings the Blues proved that Diana Ross wasn't just dabbling in acting. The former
08:51 supreme was able to create a fully fleshed out character from the history of one of music's
08:55 most tragic and battered souls. "Now every day I start by saying to you,
09:03 good morning Harley, what's new?" Number 2. Walk the Line
09:11 Johnny Cash wasn't a one-man band. His wife and frequent duet partner June Carter Cash was an
09:16 important if not essential part of his success and long-standing legacy.
09:20 In Walk the Line, their very personal story is given a very personal touch.
09:34 Not only do stars Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon do their own singing,
09:38 but they also learned how to play their characters' instruments.
09:41 It's a harmonious match, whether you're talking about the actor's musicianship or their on-screen
09:59 chemistry. If its success with critics and audiences is any indication,
10:03 it is easily one of the best movies of its kind.
10:06 "I'm Jonah Jackson, and that's a fact. Yeah, I'm Jonah Jackson, ain't never coming back."
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10:35 Number 1. Cole Miner's Daughter
10:37 Sissy Spacek turned out to be a pretty great match for Loretta Lynn,
10:53 especially when you consider the singer only picked her because they looked alike.
10:56 It's even more unlikely how good she is considering the actress only wanted to do her own singing so
11:01 the producers would quickly realize their mistake in casting her. But Spacek embodies her Oscar
11:06 winning role from head to toe, taking complete ownership of Lynn's characteristically sassy
11:11 country classics. "Yeah, I'm proud to be a coal miner's daughter. I remember well,
11:22 the well where I drew water." Just as uncanny is actress Beverly D'Angelo's
11:29 take on Patsy Cline's haunting records. Their very real skills as vocalists elevate the movie,
11:34 grounding it in the kind of authenticity its real subject was known for.
11:38 Does casting an actor who can sing the role really make a biopic better?
11:53 Sound off in the comments below. "I'll be a bum if you don't pull in 15 bucks in tips tonight.
11:57 15 bucks! Now that's my definition of a good singer." Do you agree with our picks? Check out
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