Anne Hathaway to play Judy Garland

The tumultuous life of the great Judy Garland is far more interesting than any of the roles she played in such classics as The Wizard of Oz, A Star is Born and Meet Me in St. Louis.

So it is quite a coup that 2009 Oscar nominee Anne Hathaway (Rachel Getting Married) has landed the role of this gay icon in both the stage and screen versions of the Garland bio Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland written by Gerald Clarke.

We found out Hathaway could sing last month when she joined Oscar host Hugh Jackman for a surprise duet on the awards show – one of the highlights of the telecast.

Hathaway came to fame in Disney’s Princess Diaries movies but segued into more adult roles as Jake Gyllenhaal’s wife in Brokeback Mountain and Becoming Jane. She has also done comedy in Get Smart and Bride Wars.

Hathaway is most fortunate to already be tied to both stage and screen versions. Her Diaries co-star Julie Andrews was famously passed over for the film version My Fair Lady in favor of Audrey Hepburn after being a huge smash in it on Broadway. There are many other examples of this: Ethel Merman losing the movie version of Gypsy to Roz Russell, Carol Channing losing Hello Dolly to Barbra Streisand, Lauren Bacall losing Cactus Flower to Ingrid Bergman and in one of the most disastrous casting decisions: Tony winner Angela Lansbury being snubbed for the movie version of Mame in favor of Lucille Ball.

No word yet on when the stage production of Get Happy would begin or filming – or on a director. But the Weinstein Co. is behind the project.