SUPERSTAR ON
Actress tells how belting out her hero’s music in the shower helped her get through pandemic
SCARLETT Johansson wasn’t nervous about her duet with Bono in new animated film Sing 2 – because it “almost felt like I was just singing in the shower”.
The 37-year-old has been a fan of U2 since she was a teenager and dreamt of singing with the band. She sings their songs in the shower and in the car. But in Sing 2 she gets to duet with Bono on I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.
She laughed: “In what world would I ever duet with Bono? Maybe in my 13-year-old-fantasy.
“But since it all happened during quarantine and life felt strange anyway, I didn’t even consider that other people would actually hear me sing this.
“I was so used to doing everything alone for 18 months that it almost felt like I was just singing in the shower.”
It’s not the first time the actress, who is Black Widow in the Marvel films, has duetted – she teamed up with Scots rockers The Jesus and Mary Chain on Just Like Honey at Coachella in 2007. The late David Bowie did backing vocals on her debut album.
She laughed: “My 13-year-old self was in disbelief. I was like, I’m singing U2 in my car and now I’m singing in the studio, but it’s just karaoke. I didn’t have time to process but I am now and it’s awesome.”
Scarlett reprises the role of Ash the porcupine pop star while Bono plays a new character, reclusive rock star lion Clay Calloway.
Scarlett, who has been his pal for years, added: “It’s totally mind-blowing. I couldn’t have imagined a situation where we would be doing a duet, or certainly a duet that anybody would ever hear.
“Maybe like a duet at 4 in the morning at some random hotel bar or whatever. But not on a soundtrack.”
As well as singing I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, Scarlett will sing a solo version of Stuck In a Moment You Can’t Get Out Of .
The cast will also sing Where The Streets Have No Name and a new U2
MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY
Returns as Buster, the koala who owns the Moon Theatre. REESE WITHERSPOON Pig Rosita, who has stage fright but encourages other performers.
TARON EGERTON
Returns as Johnny, the ex-convict gorilla who has the voice of a superstar.
TORI KELLY
Meena, a teen elephant who overcame stage fright in Sing.
NICK KROL
Gunter, the dancing pig who partners with Rosita to perform in Red Shore City.
BONO
Is new character Clay Calloway, a reclusive rock star white lion.
PHARRELL WILLIAMS
Is new character Alfonso, an elephant ice cream vendor.
BOBBY CANNAVALE
Is the film’s baddie, Mr Crystal, a wolf media mogul.
HALSEY
Is Porsha Crystal, the spoiled but talented daughter of Mr Crystal. song Your Song Saved My Life will also feature on Sing 2’s forthcoming soundtrack. The actress, who has released two albums as a singer, did not contact Bono for advice. She said: “Maybe I should have, I have his number so I could have messaged him. I mostly listened to the songs, at full volume in the car. “When I had to go into the recording studio to sing my pieces , I just did what I did in the car.”
The mum of two revealed U2 dragged her through quarantine. “Those timeless anthems were reassuring for me. And a song like Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of was also very appropriate, because we were all stuck.”
The original Sing animated film was released in 2016 and was a huge hit.
The sequel follows Buster Moon