Singer Billy Ray Cyrus takes a ride in Mulholland Drive.
THAT MULLET, THAT LINE
dancing ... that eye-opening
role in one of the season's
most shocking films? Country
crooner Billy Ray Cyrus, who
skyrocketed to fame in 1992
with the novelty hit "Achy
Breaky Heart"and then disappeared from the charts just as
fast, is getting his big breaky
in the unlikeliest of places:
the new David Lynch film,
Mulholland Drive. Even the
country boy himself knows
he's a little out of place.
"I guarantee you, I'm the only guy ever to go read for a David Lynch movie with two stolen chickens sitting in his agent's Porsche," the 40-year-old Cyrus says. After playing hero to his kids by saving the birds from imminent death at a zoo, Cyrus landed the role of Gene, a home-wrecking pool cleaner. The film is no star vehicle for Cyrus, but he holds his own among an apt ensemble and neo-noir master Lynch.
"I was expecting this really
strange man to come out in a
black cape or something," he
says of the director. But, in
fact, Lynch ended up being
quite the cheerleader, encouraging the singer-who had
previously turned down roles
in The Apostle and Hope
Floats-to seriously pursue
acting. Now Cyrus is keeping
busy with his new PAX TV
show, Doc, and he's already
learned a major secret of
Hollywood success. "For the
Lynch movie, I wanted an
acting coach, but they said
they wanted me to be myself
Same thing for the TV show,"
he says. "That's probably all
I can really do. So far I've just
kind of played myself." Some-
times that's all ittakes.
-Kevin Polowy
© 2001 Hachette Filipacchi Magazines Inc.
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