Do one thing, and do it well.
What used to be good advice for anyone trying to succeed is no longer good enough. The mind-set now, at least in Nashville, is that having credibility as a country singer begets the license to act. But when an artist journeys deeper into Hollywood, is anything compromised?
Tim McGraw, who has sold 33 million country albums and is starring in the remake of “Flicka,” doesn’t think so. In a call from Los Angeles, where he was promoting the film, McGraw said, “My schedule was clear anyway because I was planning on being off. I can’t do a lot of movies normally, but this one fell into place.” So for three months the McGraw family moved from Nashville to their Beverly Hills home.
In the remake of the 1943 film “My Friend Flicka,” McGraw plays Rob McLaughlin, hard-working Wyoming rancher, husband and over protective father. “I wasn’t interested at all,” said McGraw about receiving the script. “I didn’t want to play that rancher-in-a-cowboy-hat role. But the more I read, the harder it was to turn it down.”
Clearly, McGraw has the music thing down. And t here was critical praise for his supporting role in the 2004 film “Friday Night Lights,” but “Flicka” was his first attempt at a lead. “I had no doubts about my ability but some apprehension about being on the screen that long,” he said.
Even if he can handle tougher roles, though, his music may not be able to. Since McGraw started taking acting seriously, with “Black Cloud” and “Friday Night Lights” in 2004, he hasn’t released an album with all new songs. Earlier this year, he put out a greatest hits album with only four new recordings on it.
And McGraw’s not alone. Country-music queen Reba McEntire has had plenty of movie roles and a long-running TV series, “Reba.” While no one on Team Reba will admit to any sacrifices, her top 10 hits have been fewer since she took on a grueling TV schedule. Since starting “Reba” five years ago, only three of her songs have made it to the top 10 on the country charts. But in the five years before starting the show, she had 13 hits in the top 10.
Another country music star, Billy Ray Cyrus, also started acting in 2001 in the TV series “Doc” and more recently in “Hannah Montana.” Since he made the jump to acting, he hasn’t had a single in the top 10. But that wasn’t by accident. Cyrus knew that pursuing an acting career meant leaving country music behind.
“At that time, Nashville was shucking out cookie-cutter cowboys, and it was obvious that I didn’t fit in with what country radio was playing,” Cyrus said. “You couldn’t tell the songs, hats or faces apart. I thought I could go away quietly, or do what Dolly Parton did and branch out.”
It’s too early in his acting career to know if country superstar Toby Keith is ever going to put his music on the back burner. His first attempt was “Broken Bridges,” which opened in early September. “I have no intention of giving up my day job for acting,” Keith said. “But I’d like to release a movie every 18 months or so.”
Bit players
A handful of other country artists have done some bit parts too. McGraw’s wife, Faith Hill, did a stint in “Stepford Wives,” Willie Nelson recently showed up in the “Dukes of Hazzard” movie, and Dwight Yoakam had a part in “Panic Room.” Even Kenny Chesney has shown signs of wanting to validate himself beyond the confines of Nashville. He turned his latest single, “You Save Me,” into a 9-minute short film that doubles as that song’s music video.
The decision to cast a country artist in a movie can come from anywhere. Sometimes, an artist will push for a role. Other times, artists get a call to read a script out of the blue.
Chet Flippo, CMT’s editorial director, thinks it’s about time. “The desire by country artists has always been there, and now Hollywood has come around to accepting country artists as regular people,” Flippo said told the Tribune. “It proves that country music has been mainstreamed into popular culture.”
But it’s not always just a case of an open-minded casting director. Sometimes, it’s all about incremental box office sales. Think about how many more people will see “Flicka” just to see McGraw. Or how many Keith fans will pre-order the “Broken Bridges” DVD.
“More agents are pitching country artists as actors,” said Danny Roth, owner of Casting House. “If you get a singer in the movie, you have a built-in market. Studio heads know that they should cast more for marketing reasons and less for traditional reasons.” So this specialty casting trend could be all about business, and less about an artist stretching his creative potential.
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Although when you add up the list of rap artists who’ve had success in Hollywood, such as Eminem, Will Smith, Queen Latifah and OutKast, it’s easy to see how country artists would want to follow in their footsteps. And the hip-hoppers have done such a seamless job of transitioning themselves onto the silver screen that pop culturists may have a tough time remembering which came first: the rapping or the acting.
Does that mean any musician may soon be the first choice for a leading role? Not yet.
According to “Flicka” director Michael Mayer, McGraw was not his first choice. He had originally considered Kevin Costner for the lead. “When I first read it, I thought of the obvious tough cowboy types. Guys who fit the more conventional ideas of a rancher,” Mayer said. “But Tim was so passionate about the character, I couldn’t imagine doing this film without him.”
Mayer also found that McGraw refused special treatment. “He was dedicated to my pushing him. He said, `Don’t let me get away with anything,'” Mayer said. McGraw does his own riding and roping in the film, and when it came time to rehearse his lines, he did so at home with Hill.
No problems
“I’m not a big coaching guy. I’ve never had voice lessons or guitar lessons,” McGraw admitted. “Memorizing lines isn’t hard for me because of all the songs I’ve memorized.”
But McGraw knows he’s not perfect. He admits that making movies is much different than making music videos. “In my videos, I’m in charge. But in movies, you’re at the mercy of everyone else,” he said. “And in videos you look into the camera; in movies you have to pretend it’s not there. I’m sure I blew a lot of shots because of that.”
While his character in “Flicka” doesn’t show how far away he can get from the cowboy image, his role in “Friday Night Lights” did. In that, he played an over-the-top abusive alcoholic and was nominated for an MTV Movie Award (best breakthrough male). The film was also a box office hit, grossing $61 million.
Box office numbers for Keith’s “Broken Bridges” haven’t done nearly as well. The film was criticized as a weepy country ballad of a movie and has only managed to pull in a paltry $250,000 in its limited release. But producer Donald Zuckerman has plenty of faith in Keith’s acting ability. He told the Tribune that Keith worked hard with an acting coach to get ready.
This new generation of singers turned actors is in danger of neglecting the music that brought fame in the first place. In their efforts to break the Nashville chains that bind them, they could stray too far. To succeed, an artist needs to have reached a level where country radio will continue to embrace the music even if it has been on the shelf a while. And where your fans will stay loyal despite fewer CDs and a less aggressive touring schedule.
Bottom line? You have to be big enough to get away with it.