‘Big Bang’s Simon Helberg Is Meryl Streep’s Pianist In Stephen Frears-Directed ‘Florence Foster Jenkins’
EXCLUSIVE: The Big Bang Theory star Simon Helberg has just been set to star alongside Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant in Florence Foster Jenkins, the Pathe-financed film that Stephen Frears will next direct.
It’s a true story and Streep plays the title character, a wealthy woman in high-society NYC in the early 2oth century who used her relationships and her fortune to gain traction as a singer. Trouble was, she couldn’t sing; she was plagued by terrible pitch and rhythm and was, unbeknownst to her, ridiculed at her well-attended performances. Helberg will play Cosme McCoon, who became her accompanist on the piano. Cosme is the newcomer to the blue blood world. Grant plays her butler and best friend, whose job is to protect her from becoming self aware that the sound of cats drowning is more soothing than her vocal styling.
It’s a big get for Helberg, just one of the Big Bang gang who are making movie moves (Johnny Galecki just formed a Warner Bros-based production company and Melissa Rauch wrote and stars in the Sundance comedy The Bronze). Helberg most recently starred opposite Melanie Lynskey and Zachary Quinto in We’ll Never Have Paris, a film he produced, wrote and co-directed with his wife, Jocelyn Towne.
Helberg is repped by UTA, Brillstein Entertainment Partners and attorney Bob Myman.
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