Jimmy Fallon is set to reprise his role as band manager Dennie Hope in the musical adaptation of Cameron Crowe's 2000 film, Almost Famous, according to a report by Deadline. Fallon played the small role of the perennially stressed-out Hope, the road manager for the fictional band Stillwater, in the movie.
Crowe appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon over three years ago when he mentioned the development of the musical to Fallon while promoting his documentary David Crosby - Remember My Name. At the time, he offered Fallon an open invite to reprise the role at any time. Crowe then returned to the show to promote Almost Famous on November 1.
“In the spirit of the musical and the cast being our ‘band,’ we love the idea of our favorites and future favorites dropping in to ‘jam,’” Crowe told Deadline. “The whole thing began with Jimmy — as the link between the two (film and musical) casts.” Crowe co-wrote the lyrics for the musical's songs, which will include songs from the film including 'Fever Dog' by Stillwater. In addition, it will feature hit songs from the 1970s including Led Zeppelin’s 'Ramble On' and 'Whole Lotta Love,' David Bowie’s 'It Ain’t Easy,' Lynyrd Skynyrd's 'Simple Man,' and - fans rejoice - Elton John's 'Tiny Dancer.' Music for the musical is written by Tom Kitt who also collaborated with Crowe on the song lyrics.
The original film was a semi-autobiographical original story by Crowe, about a teenage aspiring journalist who tries his luck and ends up bagging a commission from Rolling Stone magazine to follow the rock band Stillwater on the road. The coming-of-age story, based on Crowe's own youth, is considered by many to be the director's magnum opus, and featured Billy Crudup, Patrick Fugit, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Anna Paquin, Zooey Deschanel and Jason Lee among others.
Almost Famous received widespread critical acclaim upon its release, with universal praise given to the performances of Frances McDormand and Kate Hudson, in what was considered her star-making role as the 'groupie' or 'band-aid' known as Penny Lane. Both actresses were nominated for Academy Awards for their performances. The film was also victorious in the Best Original Screenplay category for Crowe's script. The film also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy, while Hudson won Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture. In addition, it also won the Grammy Award for Best Soundtrack for a Motion Picture in 2001.
You can catch the trailer for Almost Famous below. The movie is available to stream via Showtime on Hulu. The musical opens on November 3 at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre.