Ricki Lake on "King of the Hill", and starred in the television movie "Baby Cakes". She had a cameo appearance in the 2007 remake of the original cult-classic "Hairspray" as a William Morris talent agent, and teamed up with star Nikki Blonsky (who played Tracy Turnblad in the 2007 movie musical remake) and Marissa Jaret Winokur (who played Tracy Turnblad in the Broadway musical based on the original 1988 film) to record "Mama I'm a Big Girl Now" for the soundtrack. The song is played during the film's end credits. She later reunited with original "Hairspray" co-star Deborah Harry for the film
Ricki and the Flash shot at Untermyer Park in Yonkers, New York. On May 6, 2014, Sony's TriStar set the film for a June 26, 2015 release. The release date was later changed to August 7, 2015. The film was chosen as the opening selection for the 2015 Locarno Film Festival which was held on August 5, 2015 in Locarno, Switzerland. "Ricki and the Flash" grossed $26.8 million in North America and $13.3 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $40.1 million, against a budget of $18 million. The film grossed $6.6 million from 1,603 theaters in its opening weekend, finishing 7th