SUNDAY MAIL & TELEGRAPH

ONJ hopelessly devoted to Delta but won’t watch

Sunday Mail

6 May 2018
ANNA BRAIN

IT may be Delta Goodrem’s best cover version yet.

The singer has belted out tunes from artists as diverse as Whitney Houston, The Beatles and The Darkness, and now she’s performed her interpretation of hero and friend Olivia Newton-John’s 1984 wedding to US actor Matt Lattanzi.

Her backing group, so to speak, in the scene from biopic Olivia Newton-John: Hopelessly Devoted To You, is perfect 1980s hair and an over-the-top wedding gown.

Her story and ONJ’s share remarkable similarities that bind them.
They have both battled and beaten cancer. They both enjoyed a successful career trajectory at a young age, combining singing and acting.
Both have copped the same professional criticisms: wooden acting; being too nice, blonde and bland.

The two-part telemovie’s storytelling neatly borrows moments from ONJ’s biggest flicks Grease and Xanadu to introduce key moments in her life.
But though Newton-John gave Goodrem her blessing to play the part, she has said she will not be watching.

“When they told me they were doing it, I was horrified,” she told Women’s Weekly. “I’m kind of private ... I worry about the people in my life.

“But I realised it was going to happen whether I wanted it to or not.
“So I decided to make something positive out of the negative and I asked that any money that would come to me would go to my hospital.

“I love Delta. She called and asked me ... I said ‘oh, you do it’.”

Goodrem’s casting in Olivia Newton-John: Hopelessly Devoted To You is about more than just turning in a good performance as the beloved Aussie entertainers are good friends in real life.

Thankfully, the two-part biopic incorporates the negative press in a fun way and focuses on ONJ’s achievements in Australia and overseas.

Understandably, at times it’s hard to forget that this is Goodrem playing ONJ.

At others, particularly the opening number of the second episode, she really pulls it off and becomes her.

And, of course, Goodrem is a promoter’s dream, having cannily recorded an album of ONJ’s greatest hits, including a duet with her.


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THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 

Olivia Newton- John and Matt Lattanzi tie the knot, and (right) Delta Goodrem replicates the moment for the TV biopic. Delta Goodrem as Olivia NewtonJohn and Richard Brancatisano as Matt Lattanzi.

IT may be Delta Goodrem’s best cover version yet.

The singer has belted out tunes from artists as diverse as Whitney Houston, The Beatles and The Darkness, and now she’s performed her interpretation of hero and friend Olivia Newton-John’s 1984 wedding to American actor Matt Lattanzi.

Her backing group, so to speak, in the scene from biopic Olivia Newton-John: Hopelessly Devoted To You, is perfect 1980s hair and over-the-top wedding gown.

Her story and ONJ’s share remarkable similarities that bind them.

They have both battled and beaten cancer. They both enjoyed a successful career trajectory at a young age, combining singing and acting. Both have copped the same professional criticisms: wooden acting; being too nice, blonde and bland.

The two-part telemovie’s storytelling neatly borrows moments from her biggest flicks Grease and Xanadu to introduce key moments in her life.

But though Newton-John gave Goodrem her blessing to play the part, she has said she will not be watching.

“When they told me they were doing it, I was horrified,” she said.