Oprah Winfrey on the Great White Way? The Butler Star Says ‘Broadway Is Definitely in My Future’

Oprah Winfrey has hinted about making her stage debut over the years, and the talk show mogul is still on the hunt for the perfect Broadway role, according to The New York Daily News. “Broadway is definitely in my future,” Winfrey said. “Nothing is set as of yet, but it’s there. I see it. Broadway is in my future.”

Although Winfrey is confident about making an appearance on the Great White Way, she insists she’s not going to rush into a project she doesn’t believe in. “I feel no urgency,” she said. “Though I do feel a sense of, what do I do next? Because for so long, for so many years, the Oprah show was the great love of my life.”

Winfrey doesn’t have to worry about finding a Broadway co-star—in 2011, Chris Rock appeared on Oprah while starring in The Motherf**ker With the Hat, and the host asked Rock for advice about how to begin a stage career. Rock expressed interest in being Winfrey’s co-star on Broadway, saying, “Please, I want you to do it. You’ll be a different person. I hope I’m in it—I’ll do it.”

Winfrey last appeared on screen in Beloved in 1998. Her additional film and TV credits include The Color Purple, 30 Rock, Bee Movie, Charlotte’s Web, Sesame Street, Jesus Henry Christ and Native Son. The Oprah Winfrey Show aired for 25 seasons, from 1986 to 2011. She plays Gloria Gaines in the new film The Butler, which hits theaters August 16.

The star would be great in a Broadway play (hopefully alongside Chris Rock!), but could she take on a musical? Click below to see a 1987 clip of Winfrey singing “This Little Light of Mine” with Dolly Parton.