Photo: ABC
LeAnn Rimes spoke about playing a “villain” on 9-1-1: Nashville during an appearance on LIVE with Kelly and Mark on Friday morning (February 27).
The Grammy-winning country artist plays Dixie Bennings on the ABC action-drama. Rimes’ character is a singer who is dealing with vocal issues, which she admitted was “quite the challenge” to act as though her voice was strained while she balanced filming and touring. She said of her character, “I get to play Dixie. She’s super manipulative, but got the best heart in the world. She’s a single mom. (She) loves her son. But it’s so fun. I’ve never gotten to play a character like this, that’s just like this kind of ‘villain.’”
Mark Consuelos pointed out that Dixie Bennings has “a nemesis” in Blythe Hart, played by Jessica Capshaw. Rimes said the two of them “have a great time, and you know, we get to fight on screen and then right as soon as they yell ‘cut,’ we’re talking about girl stuff off screen. It’s fun.” Kelly Ripa agreed, “I would want to work with her every day.”
The newest episode of 9-1-1: Nashville premiered on Thursday evening (February 26). The episode included a song that Rimes wrote with Darrell Brown for her character. She released her own version of “wild things run” earlier this week.
9-1-1: Nashville also stars Chris O’Donnell, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Hailey Kilgore, Michael Provost, Hunter McVey and Juani Feliz. ABC described the newest 9-1-1 installment as “a high-octane procedural about heroic first responders, as well as their family saga of power and glamour set in one of America’s most diverse and dynamic cities.” 9-1-1: Nashville airs on Thursday evenings on ABC, and is available to stream the following day on Hulu. Watch Rimes talk about the show on LIVE with Kelly and Mark here: