Kathleen Elizabeth Monteleone is back in the elimination zone in her new movie, “American Reject.”
Monteleone — who competed on NBC’s “Grease: You’re the One That I Want!” and placed fourth for the part of Sandy on Broadway — turned her real-life rejection into a script skewering reality competition shows.
In the film, she also stars as Kay, a contestant on the fictional, “American Idol”-style show dubbed “Pop Star Now!”
In this exclusive sneak peek at the movie, Kay is rushed on stage alongside fellow-contestant Bethany (Rebecca Black, of “Friday” fame) following their performances — as it’s revealed one of them received the highest number of votes, while the other earned the least.
While the host remarks on the “bright future” ahead of 20-year-old Bethany, he says that for Kay, “in her mid-thirties,” this could be her “last chance” to make it big.
After a long drawn out moment taking aim at the heavy-handed editing of shows like these, the judges — including Billy Ray Cyrus — send Kay packing. “The people have spoken, Kay, and you are outta here!” he exclaims, asking her to sing “her very last song ever” before hitting the road.
Following her ousting, she’s forced to return home and move back in with her mom, while filming a post-elimination series for the same network. As she’s “reacquainted with her past,” the synopsis teases, “it turns out, losing is her only way to win.”
Directed by Marlo Hunter, the movie — written by Monteleone and inspired by her real-life experience — also stars Keala Settle, Angelica Hale, Annaleigh Ashford, Perez Hilton and Juvenile.
The movie is out now on digital and On Demand.
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