By Megan Riedlinger
7:53am PST, Dec 2, 2022
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Country music stars have received the Hollywood treatment time and time again, with films and television shows telling the tales of the real-life superstars. The most recent example? "George & Tammy," which debuts on Showtime on Dec. 4, 2022, with Michael Shannon playing George Jones to Jessica Chastain's Tammy Wynette — once a power couple in country music. To mark the release of the new series, Wonderwall.com is rounding up other stars who've tackled country legends.
Keep reading to see how the stars measure up to the real country music icons…
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Grammy-winning legend Tammy Wynette rose to fame in the '60s, married George Jones in 1969 and by the '70s, she was one of the most popular stars in the genre. This period of her life is chronicled in "George & Tammy," with Jessica Chastain portraying the star known as the "First Lady of Country Music." Tammy also gave the world one of the bestselling country songs of all time, "Stand By Your Man."
RELATED: The biggest country music scandals
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George Jones launched his career in the '50s and began to cross paths with Tammy Wynette in the '60s. They married in 1969 and soon became a country music power duo. Though the divorced in the mid-'70s, they continued to perform together on and off over the next two decades. His hit "He Stopped Loving Her Today" is renowned as one of the best country music songs of all time.
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Oscar-nominated actor Michael Shannon took on the role of country music star George Jones on the 2022 Showtime series "George & Tammy."
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Patsy Cline's phenomenal music career only spanned eight years — she died in a plane crash at 30 in 1963 — but her legacy endures to this day. She was also one of the first country stars to cross over into pop music. A major movie star portrayed her on the big screen…
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In 1985, Jessica Lange played Patsy Cline in "Sweet Dreams." The role scored her an Academy Award nomination for best actress.
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The one and only Johnny Cash had a prolific music career that began when he started writing music during his time in the U.S. Air Force. Though he got his start in country music, he also dabbled in rock 'n' roll and gospel over the years. To this day, he remains one of the bestselling music artist of all time.
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Joaquin Phoenix's take on the legendary Johnny Cash in 2005's "Walk the Line" earned him a Golden Globe Award for best actor and a best actor Oscar nomination.
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June Carter Cash's career went through changes over the years — she first sang with her relatives as the Carter Family, had a solo career and later performed with her husband, Johnny Cash. She co-wrote Johnny's famous tune "Ring of Fire" and won five Grammys over the years, three of which were for her solo work.
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Reese Witherspoon took on the role of June Carter Cash in 2005's "Walk the Line" opposite Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash. Her stellar performance won her an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award for best actress.
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Loretta Lynn's impressive career in country music spanned six decades. She became the most awarded female in country music history and won three Grammys, with a whopping 18 nominations to her name. In 1980, her real-life tale got the big screen treatment…
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Playing a country music star often leads to an Academy Award! Sissy Spacek took on the role of Loretta Lynn in the 1980 film "Coal Miner's Daughter" and won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her riveting performance.
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Despite his sudden death at 29 in 1953, the name Hank Williams remains iconic in the world of country music. The singer's meteoric rise to fame at a young age was dramatized in the 2015 film "I Saw the Light."
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British actor Tom Hiddleston brought Hank Williams to life in the 2015 film "I Saw the Light."
