There are many examples of musicians who have tried acting with varying degrees of success. All of the following country stars have acted in at least one movie or TV show. Do you prefer them when they're singing or emoting for the camera? We'll take most of 'em either way.
Reba McEntire
LOS ANGELES - FEBRUARY 15: Singer Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire pose on the set of The WB's "Reba" at 20th Century Fox Studios on February 15, 2005 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
Reba McEntire made her acting debut opposite Kevin Bacon in the cult 1990 sci-fi thriller Tremors. She must have had a good time in that movie featuring wormlike monsters because she continued making TV movies and had a successful sitcom imaginatively titled Reba that aired from 2001 to 2007. She is pictured here with Dolly Parton on the set of the show. McEntire also appeared on the TV show Malibu Country and lent her voice to the animated features The Fox and the Hound 2 and Charlotte's Web.
Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin in publicity portrait for the film 'Nine To Five', 1980. (Photo by 20th Century-Fox/Getty Images)
Did someone mention Dolly Parton? The country legend made her big-screen debut opposite Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin in 1980's 9 to 5. The acclaimed movie and its accompanying song by Parton inspired working women in the 1980s and served as the inspiration for a Broadway musical. Although her focus has and continues to be on music (she asked to be released from her contract for her successful variety show in the 1970s due to strain on her vocal cords), Parton has appeared on-screen in movies such as Rhinestone, Steel Magnolias, Straight Talk and Joyful Noise.
Billy Ray Cyrus
BUENA PARK,CA - JULY 24: Country Singer Billy Ray Cyrus attends "The Movieland Wax Museum Induction of Wax Figure of Billy Ray Cyrus" on July 24, 1993 at Movieland Wax Museum in Buena Park, California. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
"Achy Breaky Heart" singer Billy Ray Cyrus did more than rock a mullet better than just about anyone. Miley Cyrus' Papa (who also plays her father on Hannah Montana) had a supporting role as a pool-guy lothario in David Lynch's surreal 2001 film Mulholland Drive. He also starred in the series Doc and appeared opposite Jackie Chan in The Spy Next Door as well as in Sharknado 2: The Second One, a couple of made-for-TV Christmas movies, and as Vernon Brownmule on the TV show Still the King.
Willie Nelson
Jessica Simpson and Willie Nelson during "The Dukes Of Hazzard" Los Angeles Premiere - Arrivals at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, United States. (Photo by J. Merritt/FilmMagic)
Willie Nelson made his big-screen debut as Wendell Hickson opposite Robert Redford and Jane Fonda in 1979's The Electric Horseman. As Uncle Jesse, Nelson was the highlight of The Dukes of Hazzard (he is pictured above alongside Jessica Simpson, who plays Daisy Duke) and The Dukes of Hazzard: The Beginning. In addition to many fun film cameos as himself, Nelson has also stolen scenes in movies such as Barbarosa and Honeysuckle Rose.
Dwight Yoakam
HOLLYWOOD - NOVEMBER 17: Actor Billy Bob Thornton and musician Dwight Yoakam attend the "Sling Blade" Hollywood Premiere on November 17, 1996 at the Cineplex Odeon Showcase Cinemas in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
Dwight Yoakam has carved out a successful side gig on-screen, mostly playing villains in movies such as Sling Blade (he is pictured above, right with Billy Bob Thornton), Panic Room and Bloodworth. In 2021, he appeared opposite Clint Eastwood in Cry Macho.
Tim McGraw
BEVERLY HILLS, CA - DECEMBER 14: Actors Garrett Hedlund, Gwyneth Paltrow, singer/actor Tim McGraw and Leighton Meester attend the "Country Strong" Los Angeles Special Screening at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on December 14, 2010 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Lester Cohen/WireImage)
"Live Like You Were Dying" singer Tim McGraw seems to have taken his own "you only live once" advice by giving acting a try... and being good at it! He played an overbearing father in Friday Night Lights, the lead in Flicka, the husband of Sandra Bullock's character in The Blind Side, and the husband and manager of Gwyneth Paltrow's country-singing character in Country Strong. He currently stars opposite wife Faith Hill on the Paramount+ series 1883.
Kris Kristofferson
Actor Kris Kristofferson as 'John Norman Howard' in film 'A Star Is Born', 1976. (Photo by Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images)
Outlaw country singer Kris Kristofferson has more than 100 film roles under his belt over the past 50 years, making him one of the most prolific country singers turned actors in history. He earned praise, including a Best Actor Golden Globe, for his performance opposite Barbra Streisand in A Star is Born. He also appeared in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, Vigilante Force, Heaven's Gate and Welcome Home in the 1970s and '80s. Action fans love him as Abraham Whistler in the Blade vampire superhero trilogy starring Wesley Snipes. In 2015, he continued to demonstrate his broad acting range by playing President Andrew Jackson on the TV miniseries Texas Rising.
