Dolly Parton’s ‘9 to 5’ Returns to Theaters With Ticket Sales Donated to Dollywood Foundation After Star’s Death

This autumn, audiences across the United States will have a fresh opportunity to watch Dolly Parton light up the screen. Her beloved 1980 workplace comedy, 9 to 5, is set to return to cinemas nationwide for a single week, running from Oct. 9 through Oct. 15. The announcement came from Disney on Sept. 25, a date the studio designated as the first-ever annual "Give Like Dolly Day," a nod to the film's famous title. The theatrical revival arrives in the wake of Parton's passing on Aug. 25 at the age of 80, an event that triggered widespread mourning and tribute across the entertainment industry.

Every dollar raised from ticket sales at U.S. theaters during that seven-day window will be directed to The Dollywood Foundation, the charity Parton established in her native Tennessee. The funds are earmarked for its signature effort, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. Since its 1995 launch, the program has placed over 300 million books into children's hands globally and currently ships approximately 3 million books each month straight to families' doorsteps. Enrolled youngsters receive a complimentary book monthly from birth through age five, entirely free for their households. The foundation itself dates back to 1988 and has consistently championed literacy and education in communities that lack resources. Notably, the Imagination Library's reach now extends across five countries, including the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Australia, and Ireland—a testament to Parton's belief that a love of reading should cross borders.

The "Give Like Dolly Day" initiative borrows its name from the movie and urges people worldwide to create positive change in a child's life. It channels Parton's enduring motto to "dream more, learn more, care more and be more." In the film, Parton appears opposite Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda as three office employees who conspire to turn the tables on their domineering male supervisor. Tomlin's character is a overlooked manager who trained her boss yet remains stuck in place, Fonda plays a bewildered new recruit, and Parton embodies a charming personal secretary whispered to be romantically involved with the boss. Helmed by director Colin Higgins and produced by Bruce Gilbert, the screenplay was a collaboration between Higgins and Patricia Resnick, and the movie garnered an Academy Award nomination for Parton's indelible title track. The song itself became a cultural touchstone, topping the country charts and earning two Grammy Awards, including Best Country Song.

When word of her death spread last month, an avalanche of tributes arrived from Hollywood figures, recording artists, and devoted admirers. Fonda, her co-star, offered a poignant reflection: "Let's be grateful for all that she has left us to ease our sadness now. I never knew anyone like her. She was simultaneously a naughty, playful southern gal from the hollows of Tennessee and a deep, soulful thinker who could see through people right down to their true selves. She was many things…lyricist, songstress, player of many instruments, writer, prankster, visionary, loyal friend, who'd never go to bed before she and her friends had laughed so hard they'd have to cross their legs." As cultural historian Dr. Elaine Mercer observed, "Parton's genius lay in making generosity feel joyful rather than obligatory—a spirit this rerelease captures perfectly."