It has been seven years since Nicole Kidman sang her way to an Oscar nomination in "Moulin Rouge," and now it appears she'll be singing once again in two upcoming films. Kidman is already rumored to be one of the women who haunt a famous film director in Rob Marshall's big-screen adaptation of the Broadway musical "Nine," and, according to Variety, she's also set to star as Dusty Springfield in an untitled biopic about the legendary British pop singer for 20th Century Fox.

Springfield was the most successful female star of the British Invasion of the 1960s, with her singles "Wishin' and Hopin'" and "I Just Don't Know What to Do With Myself" cracking Billboard's Top 10 in the United States. In the late '80s, she teamed up with the Pet Shop Boys and sang the chorus on the group's hit "What Have I Done to Deserve This," which peaked at No. 2 on Billboard's singles chart. Unfortunately, like many of her peers, she spent many years battling drug and alcohol abuse as well as mental illness. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1995 and tragically died four years later at the age of 59 on the day she was to receive her Order of the British Empire and 10 days before her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Considering what a dramatic life Springfield had, it's not surprising a competing project is also in development at Universal Pictures with Kristin Chenoweth attached to star.

It's unclear whether Kidman will record new vocals of Springfield's signature songs (a la Reese Witherspoon in "Walk the Line") or whether the diva's original tracks will be used (as when Angela Bassett lip-synched to Tina Turner in "What's Love Got to Do With It").

The new project will also reunite Kidman with author Michael Cunningham, who is set to write the Springfield screenplay. Kidman won the Oscar for her role as another famous Brit, Virginia Woolf, in the movie adaptation of Cunningham's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel "The Hours."

As for Kidman, if "Nine" goes forward (expected leading man Javier Bardem just dropped out) it will begin shooting before the end of the year, while the Springfield project appears much further down the road. In the meantime, fans can find Kidman starring opposite Hugh Jackman in the romantic epic "Australia" this November.

Next column: Who is "Prince Caspian"? Plus more on Peter and Susan's last voyage to "Narnia."

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