The Runaways Movie

The Runaways movie is a 2010 film about the all-girl rock band The Runaways. The film is based on the book Neon Angel by lead vocalist Cherie Currie. The film will focus largely on the friendship, and subsequent falling out, between Currie and the band's guitarist, Joan Jett. Dakota Fanning and Kristen Stewart portray Currie and Jett, respectively. Michael Shannon, Stella Maeve, Scout Taylor-Compton and Alia Shawkat co-star. The film debuted at the Sundance Film Festival 2010 and opened on March 19.

• Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett (guitarist, vocals)
• Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie (lead vocals)
• Scout Taylor-Compton as Lita Ford (guitarist)
• Stella Maeve as Sandy West (drummer)
• Alia Shawkat as Robin (bassist, role created for film)

Joan Jett and drummer Sandy West formed The Runaways in late 1975, with the assistance of producer Kim Fowley. Soon thereafter, the group added bassist Micki Steele, guitarist Lita Ford and singer Cherie Currie to the line-up, though Steele left soon after and formed The Bangles. The band's self-titled debut album was released in 1976, and included the hit song "Cherry Bomb." The song has been a perennial classic rock favorite ever since, appearing in commercials, in the video game Rock Band and on numerous lists of the top hard rock songs of all time.

Singer Cherie Currie left the band in 1977, and Jett took over performing the lead vocals. The Runaways and Fowley parted ways in 1978 after a string of financial disputes, and the band also broke ties with their label, Mercury Records. The band played its final concert on New Year's Eve Day of that year and officially announced they had broken up in April of 1979.

Jett continued her music career by forming a band called The Blackhearts in the 1980s, with whom she scored a few hits, such as "I Love Rock n' Roll." Lita Ford went on to become one of the first and most successful female artists to break through as a heavy metal star.