Shania Twain’s life is heading to the big screen, and this time she’s helping make it happen.
Sony Pictures is developing a biopic called Shania, co-produced by the five-time Grammy winner herself.
The film will be directed by Leah McKendrick, who is known for the indie comedy-drama Scrambled and the upcoming Netflix romantic comedy Voicemails for Isabelle. McKendrick will direct from her own original script, her representatives told CBC News.
Details about casting, a release date and which part of Twain’s life the film will cover are being kept under wraps, according to McKendrick’s representatives.
Twain’s story includes a rise from a childhood marked by extreme poverty in Timmins, Ontario, to becoming one of the bestselling artists in country music history. The 60-year-old singer was also the focus of the 2022 Netflix documentary Shania Twain: Not Just a Girl.
Deadline reported that McKendrick’s background as a pop singer-songwriter helped her land the project.
On Instagram, McKendrick said the film is deeply personal for her.
“Long before I was making movies, I was shooting Shania music videos in my bedroom,” McKendrick posted alongside screenshots of Deadline’s report.
“This wild-hearted force of a woman means so much to me — and the world. It is a surreal dream come true to get to bring her trailblazing, gut-punching, awe-inspiring story to the screen.”
She added, “I am honoured. I am humbled. I am READY. Let’s go, girls.”
Since the early 1990s, Twain has released hits including Any Man of Mine, That Don’t Impress Me Much, You’re Still the One, Up! and From This Moment On.
According to McKendrick’s representatives, those songs helped lay the foundation for today’s genre-bending country-pop crossover sound and helped Twain become the bestselling female country-pop artist of all time, with more than 100 million albums sold worldwide.
That Don’t Impress Me Much appeared on Twain’s 1997 album Come on Over, which remains the bestselling studio album by a female solo artist of all time.
The biopic news comes ahead of Twain’s seventh studio album, Little Miss Twain, which is set for release on July 24. Deadline reported the album is expected to be the most personal work of her career.
Shania is the latest music biopic on Sony’s slate. The studio released Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody through TriStar in December 2022 and is also backing The Beatles – A Four-Film Cinematic Event, directed by Sam Mendes.
CBC News said it contacted Twain and Sony Pictures for comment but did not immediately hear back.
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