Lea Michele on ‘New Year’s Eve’: “I didn’t really intend on doing a film where I sang”

Lea Michele’s extraordinary voice is showcased each week in her starring role on FOX’s Glee but is the songbird ready to trade in her signature solos for non-singing film roles?

Despite the fact that she sings in the new film, New Year’s Eve, Michele says she is ready to explore other opportunities in Hollywood.  In an interview with E! Online, Michele says, “I just felt that it was a perfect part for me to play for my first film.  To really transition from Glee…And from now on I might start to try to look into other things without singing to give my voice a break.”

The part, a backup singer for Bon Jovi, was written specifically with her in mind.  Michele read the script without the mindset of finding another role to display her vocal talents, and she had no idea the part had been written for her.  She says, “I didn’t really intend on doing a film where I sang.  I sing so much on my show that I sort of felt like maybe I would start looking into things that didn’t involve me singing, but when I read the script, the songs were already in there—they didn’t add them for me.”  Director Gary Marshall (Pretty Woman, Princess Diaries) also made clear his choice for the role—he wanted a “fellow Bronx girl” to sing the last song heard in the film.

There is one singing role Michele would still drop everything for.  If a revival production of Funny Girl is ever in the works, Michele says, “I would do that show for an empty room by myself!”