Dolly Parton to develop NBC movies based on her songs, life

PASADENA, Calif. — Hello, Dolly.

Country music superstar Dolly Parton has signed a development deal with NBC to produce a slate of two-hour, stand-alone movies “based on the songs, stories and inspiring life” of the Tennessee-born actress, singer and theme park patron.

“I don’t know anyone in the world who doesn’t love Dolly Parton, and the idea of developing television movies inspired by her incredible life and the stories she has sung about for decades is exciting to all of us at NBC,” said NBC Entertainment head Bob Greenblatt.

Greenblatt, a Rockford native and University of Illinois alum, worked with Parton years ago when he produced the Broadway version of “9 to 5: The Musical.”

“I had lunch with her a couple months ago,” he said. “She said, ‘I’d love to see if there’s some movies we could develop out of the stories that I’ve been writing.’ We’re going to develop several movies and see what happens.”

Greenblatt said there’s a chance Parton could appear in some of the made-for-TV movies.

Added NBC Entertainment President Jennifer Salke: “You can bet there will be a lot of her music in them.”

NBC divulged a few details Friday about other projects in the pipeline:

— “The Wiz” in the works for live holiday musical

— Eva Longoria’s new comedy “Telenovela” gets a 13-episode order

— NBC developing Underground Railroad miniseries with Stevie Wonder

— Zachary Levi to headline “Heroes Reborn”

In other news, NBC’s cult hit “Hannibal” has been pushed to the summer and the network is testing the waters on another “Chicago Fire” spinoff.