Producer Brian Grazer has been trying to get a James Brown film made for more than a decade and it looks like his persistence has finally paid off as Universal and Imagine Entertainment have tapped 42 star Chadwick Boseman, who was Jackie Robinson in the film, to play the Godfather of Soul, Mr. James Brown.
The film, which was scripted by Jez and John Henry Butterworth, is also being produced by rocker Mick Jagger and Victoria Pearman under their Jagged Films banner while Tate Taylor, director of The Help, is set to helm the picture which will be shot mostly in Mississippi.
There is no official title or synopsis yet but the film is set to chronicle the life of James Brown as he rose from poverty living in Georgia to becoming one of the most famous R&B musicians to ever live until his death in 2006 at the age of 73. Expect a lot of awesome of tunes like “I Got You (I Feel Good)” to appear in the film but the question is, will they be lip synced or will Chadwick or someone else be doing their own renditions?
This is the second major black figure that Boseman is playing and while I didn’t see 42, I heard the movie wasn’t that good but I didn’t hear bad things about his performance. I think the guy has the look to pull of a young, and maybe even old, Brown with the right wig but right now only time can tell and I still need to see 42 to see if the guy has the chops to nail him.
What do you all think of this casting choice?
via Variety
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