Jennifer Aniston actually looks awards-baity in the first trailer for “Dumplin”

Gwen Stefani hits the studio for rehearsal in Burbank

For more than a year, we’ve been hearing about Jennifer Aniston’s passion project, bringing the book Dumplin’ to the screen. Jennifer and Danielle Macdonald filmed this in late summer 2017, and everybody seemed low-key excited about it. Now that the trailer is here, I can see why there’s a buzz around this. It looks like a great feel-good story about knowing your worth and body image and your parents’ expectations and making your own path. The screenplay was adapted from Julie Murphy’s book, and it was adapted by Kristin Hahn, Aniston’s long time friend and business partner. Aniston plays the “pageant mom,” or more like a mom who is obsessed with reliving her glory days as a beauty queen. You might know Danielle Macdonald from the indie film Patty Cake$. Here’s the trailer:

As I said, I understand the buzz now. It looks really good. Jennifer seems well-suited for the role, and Danielle Macdonald is super-talented. My one qualm is that I hate Hollywood’s fake Southern accents. Very few Southerners actually sound like Hollywood’s version of Southern. Aniston’s accent sounds hokey to me in this trailer, but maybe it’s more cohesive throughout the film. Also: I totally love the “bigger girl finds love, acceptance, peace” movies and stories. Too many stories are about slender, conventionally pretty girls daring to find love and happiness.

Last thing: this was produced by Netflix, so it’s going to have a limited theatrical run for the awards season, but most people will just watch it on Netflix when it comes out in December. I wonder if they are positioning this for awards? It feels like it’s coming out too late to be a legit contender for the Comedy awards at the Golden Globes.

Gwen Stefani hits the studio for rehearsal in Burbank

Dumplin’ promotional images courtesy of Netflix.

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55 Responses to “Jennifer Aniston actually looks awards-baity in the first trailer for “Dumplin””

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  1. cannibell says:

    Well, *that* looks like fun! (#PearlHarborDay)

  2. Mellie says:

    I’m looking forward to seeing this, I like feel good movies too!

  3. Loopy says:

    I love when Jennifer Aniston does ‘mean’ roles.

    • Dixiebells says:

      I agree! I adore her in Horrible Bosses. So delightfully over the top.

    • M.A.F. says:

      I didn’t get a mean vibe from the character. I’ve never read the book but to me the mom isn’t coming across as being mean to her daughter, I got the impression that she wanted to know why her daughter wants to do a pageant. I still plan on watching it though.

  4. IlsaLund says:

    Dolly Parton wrote original music for this film and has been honest about having her music nominated for an Oscar.

  5. dietcokehead says:

    I love all the Dolly Parton, and the movie actually looks good! I will watch on Netflix.

    The Hollywood idea of the southern accent doesn’t usually translate to anything I recognize as real southern (first examples that leap to mind are Anna paquin and Stephen Moyer from True Blood, although the guy who played her brother was spot on). But Jen’s doesn’t sound too bad here. She actually reminds me of my BFF’s mom.

    • BengalCat😻 says:

      Love your name, drinking my morning diet coke right now, yum!

      Kyra Sedgwick did a good job with the southern accent in The Closer, imo. I don’t know why Hollywood rarely gets it right.

      • dietcokehead says:

        Thank you 😊. Diet Coke is my one real vice.

        I never watched The Closer, but from the clips I did see, I think you’re right about Kyra.

    • Missyagogo says:

      It is hard for non-southerners to perfect that drawl that we have. It takes a God-given talent to talk like us!!

      • Wilady says:

        I’m from the Midwest, and have seen next to zero realistic Midwestern accents in movies. It’s always terrible and unrealistic and horrifying.

    • raindrop says:

      Agreed.

      I’ve been told several times that I “don’t sound very Southern.” Pretty sure that’s because most non-Southerners have a very specific, not very accurate idea about what Southern accents sound like (and there are SO many – we’re not homogeneous!)

      Now that you point it out, the guy who played Sookie’s brother on True Blood did a really good job with his accent work. None of them were Southern but he really nailed it. I think he’s Australian? And Anna Paquin is Canadian (I think?) and Stephen Moyer is British.

      • Ange says:

        Yeah he’s Australian. Funnily enough the Aussie accent can lend itself well to accent work because it’s fairly broad but it seems impossible for someone not Australian to get it right. The ones recently on display in The Good Place for example were absolutely woeful, I could barely understand some of them.

      • Kit says:

        Anna Paquin is a Kiwi. Ryan Kwanten (Jason Stackhouse) is Australian.
        Danielle from Patti Cakes is Australian too. She was so good in that movie.

    • manda says:

      I agree on your loving your name, too! so clever

      I also agree on the accent. I thought it sounded realistic enough. I think if they can do it consistently during the film without slipping, then they have done a good job. Was also going to mention, there are so many different southern accents, so I’m not really sure if what she is doing is true to the area the movie is supposed to take place in, but I don’t generally let things like that bother me.

  6. Jenns says:

    I think that trailer looks great and I really hope it’s a hit.

  7. Abby says:

    I had no interest in this film until I saw the preview. But now I think it looks great! I love the music. Love Dolly. This is the perfect kind of role for Jennifer. I kind of want to see this now!

  8. SilverUnicorn says:

    For some reason I love this! Hopefully I will be able to watch it (I don’t have Netflix though)

  9. skipper says:

    I get a feeling that the over-the-top southern accents are done on purpose for comedic reasons. If this were a drama they probably would have toned it down a bit.

  10. Esmom says:

    I’ll probably watch this on Netflix, it looks great. As for accents, it wasn’t exactly southern but the New Orleans accent that Dennis Quaid did for The Big Easy — my benchmark for fake accents, lol — was far more affected than any of these, imo.

  11. Vanessa says:

    Dammit, that looks fun and I hate liking Jennifer Aniston.

  12. Sunnyjyl says:

    This looks like a lot of fun; the kind of movie I could watch multiple times. I’m looking forward to it.

  13. yasmina says:

    Looks good. Hopeful it doesn’t end up like Sierra Burgess is a Loser.

    Australia seems to have some Blondes For Hollywood exchange thing going on, though: Margot Robbie, most of the Hemsworths, Cate Blanchette, Toni Colette, Mia Wasikowska, Rebel Wilson, Naomi Watts and, more recently, Danielle Macdonald and Cody Fern (plus a few borderline blondes/mostly blondes like Nicole Kidman and Jai Courtney).

  14. Lala11_7 says:

    I don’t know anything about the book….but this is what I am LOVING…

    I LOVE how that Mama looks and reacts to her Baby…

    And how it seems as though…THEY FINALLY got this subject matter…RIGHT!

    And for that alone…I AM LOVING THIS!

    • Brandy Alexander says:

      I read the book, and it was fantastic! Even for an adult. I’ve been waiting for this movie.

  15. ChillyWilly says:

    This looks really cute and love all the Dolly!

  16. Kcat says:

    This looks amazing, I will definitely see this! And I’m all in for Dolly.

  17. Cee says:

    Ok, I really need to watch this.

  18. launicaangelina says:

    I definitely will watch this film.

  19. lucy2 says:

    I don’t remember hearing about this before, but saw the trailer last night. It looks good! Sweet and funny and feel-good. I LOL’d at Jennifer’s character stuck in the car in her gown.

  20. Darla says:

    Wow this looks pretty great. Will definitely see.

  21. We Will Never Forget says:

    I LOVE Dolly Parton, Jennifer Anniston, and stories about people outside of society’s norm winning 😁

  22. cee says:

    Good thing Dolly is attached. Aniston can not carry a movie even a TV movie without a drawer. She is still not my favorite person but after Brad they all deserve a break.

  23. Jen says:

    I love the book, but I worry about the movie. Seems like they’re making it around the Mom as the main character when the book was definitely centered around Dumpling/Willowdean.

  24. .... says:

    Looks really good!

  25. Riley says:

    The trailer looks really fun! I’m glad to see Aniston in something I might actually watch. She doesn’t make the best choices on films, but this looks like a winner.

  26. Emma says:

    Always thought Jennifer Aniston a highly underrated comic actress. Her timing, expressions etc are always spot on. She was brilliant in Friends. This looks fab.

    • HappyFeetGladFeet says:

      I feel the opposite. I feel she is massively over-rated and always LOOKS like she is acting. Even her poses and expressions are those of someone who is so aware they are acting. As for Friends, I couldn’t stand that show and never understood it’s popularity given the comedy was typical silly laugh at nothing yank humour. She is just not a good actress and is an example of mass produced *hype* over talent and substance. To me, she is the Britney Spears of the acting world, or Kardashian of the acting world. Known for who she is, rather than any actual talent.

      • JenjamTx says:

        I feel like she is “one note” actor. Not much range. She plays the same character over and over.

      • epiphany says:

        I always maintained Jen went into acting to prove to her hypercritical mother that she was desirable; unfortunately, she doesn’t have the talent to back up her ambition. She does, however, demonstrate an almost prodigious skill for real estate. She really should give up show biz, and concentrate on flipping properties. This latest endeavoour is just another joint Aniston/Chinese vanity production.
        BTW, Friends was actually pretty good – Aniston was by far the weakest link, but Lisa Kudrow and Matthew Perry were excellent!

  27. HappyFeetGladFeet says:

    It seems to be a typical Aniston fawning movie made to show off Aniston. She is portrayed as the beauty queen next to a plus-sized girl, not much of a change from the movies where she always gets the guy.