Teasing out Travolta
Hollywood musicals haven't been a sure thing lately, so the brain trust behind Hairspray wanted a ringer for their remake.
And who better than the guy who cut a rug in Grease and Saturday Night Fever?
"John Travolta is our generation's greatest musical star," says Hairspray producer Neil Meron. "With those two movies, he became an icon of movie musicals. And there aren't many left."
Nor are there many hits. After Moulin Rouge and Chicago, many predicted Hollywood would be dancing its way to a genre revival. But The Producers, Rent and The Phantom of the Opera stumbled.
So filmmakers needed a star who sings as well as he acts, says director Adam Shankman. Travolta, in drag, plays Edna Turnblad, whose daughter Tracy (newcomer Nikki Blonsky) confronts racism in 1960s Baltimore. Travolta inherits the role from Divine in the original 1988 film and Harvey Fierstein in the Broadway show.
The real discovery, Shankman says, is the chemistry between the veteran and rookie. "When she walked on set for the first time, it was like she had been doing it for 30 years. John melts around her. They are so cute together, it's unbelievable."
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