Jennifer Coolidge names the actor she wants to play her in a biopic
The true entertainment icon Jennifer Coolidge came to the public’s attention with her roles as Stiffler’s Mom in the American Pie movie series from 1999 to 2012, as well as Legally Blonde and several collaborations in the mockumentary films of Christopher Guest, including Best in Show, For Your Consideration and Mascots.
However, at points, Coolidge’s career took a serious dip, and she had actually considered quitting acting for good. But in 2021, she was scooped up once again by her adoring fans with a legendary performance in Mike White’s black comedy drama The White Lotus.
With Coolidge assuming her iconic status in the entertainment industry once again, she’d be a perfect figure for a biopic to be made about her life. With that in mind, Deadline once asked the actor which of her fellow performers she would like to see take on the challenge of playing her in a prospective biopic.
“I guess Kirstie Alley,” Coolidge had said at the time. Alley had been best known for her role as Rebecca Howe in the sitcom Cheers as well as the comedy show Veronica’s Closet. In film, Alley was known for her efforts in Look Who’s Talking and its sequels. She died at the end of 2022, shortly after the podcast episode aired.
Fortunately, Coolidge had followed up on her Alley suggestion with a more serious take. “No,” she double-backed, “I mean, if I could really choose – there’s two different things – who would play, and who could you choose? If I could choose someone to play me, I think I’d have Jennifer Lawrence play me.”
“I don’t know if she’d like it, she’d probably refuse it, but… I really like her, yeah.” To see Lawrence portray Coolidge in a biopic would be a sight for sore eyes, especially given the turbulent career Coolidge has had, but that’s the person that she has in mind if it comes to picking out a fellow actor.
Coolidge’s biopic may have turned out differently, as when the interviewer asked what she might have done if she were not an actor, she replied, “I don’t play the clarinet very well or the guitar, but I would be a clarinettist or a guitar person. Some sort of low-level band. Or my real dream would be to be a detective.” Now that would be a Coolidge biopic starring Jennifer Lawrence that we’d all love to see!
