Shailene Woodley Is ‘Really Excited’ to Portray Janis Joplin in a Biopic: ‘She’s Such a Groovy Chick’

Shailene Woodley is sharing an update on her preparations to portray Janis Joplin.

Woodley, 33, spoke with Jimmy Fallon about her upcoming biopic of 1960s rock icon Joplin, who died at 27 in 1970, during her Monday, Dec. 2 appearance on The Tonight Show.

“I’m really excited,” the actress said, after Fallon, 50, remarked that he believes Woodley “would nail” the role. “We’ve been working on it for seven years now, and it’s just — she’s such a groovy chick, man. She really brought the light to this planet in a really singular way.”

Woodley said that working on the movie has “been so much fun to dive into her story” and commended working with music producer Linda Perry, who she credited with helping her learn how to sing in order to play Joplin. “She’s incredible, and she’s really pushed me to figure out how to find my own voice, because I’m like ‘I can’t sing like Janis,’ ” she recalled. “And [Perry] put me in a lot of uncomfortable situations where she was like, ‘Show up here on this date,’ [and it’s] a massive empty warehouse with a full band. She’s like ‘have fun, sing some songs.’ I was like ‘I don’t know how to sing anything — Christmas carols? What do I sing?’ “

Woodley additionally shared that the production received a tax credit from California that will allow the movie to film in the state, which she described as “such an amazing gift for this film” due to Joplin’s connections to California during her performing career.

“We have the outfits,” she added, when Fallon asked whether the movie has access to clothes from Joplin’s era. “Everything.”

The Hollywood Reporter and Rolling Stone first reported that Woodley’s Joplin biopic was moving forward with the help of California’s tax credit on Sept. 10. As the outlets reported, the untitled movie plans for a 30-day shoot in California. “I have a feeling Janis would be smiling ear to ear, zipping down the PCH in her psychedelic Porsche knowing her story is bringing opportunities and funding to the city and people that held so much significance to her,” Woodley said in a statement regarding the film at that time.

As THR reported back in May, actors who have previously been attached to Joplin biopics that never came to fruition prior to Woodley’s project include Amy Adams, Zooey Deschanel, Pink, Melissa Etheridge, Brittany Murphy and Renée Zellweger. Woodley’s movie does not yet have a release date.