Want to know how it's obvious that 42 star Chadwick Boseman hit a home run with his portrayal of Jackie Robinson? His name has been floated for a number of major projects since, including the coveted lead role in Marvel's Black Panther. But before that superhero film ever gets off the ground, or even announced, Boseman will take on another groundbreaking African-American icon; the godfather of soul, James Brown.
In the works for years, the film finally got a head of momentum last fall when The Help director Tate Taylor came aboard. The Jez Butterworth and John-Henry Butterworth penned screenplay will track Brown's rise as a Georgia youth an R&B/Soul music legend. And even more, the film is produced by Mick Jagger, who counts Brown as a major influence on his own career. It'll be a very different sort of role for Boseman, who channeled his natural charisma inward to play the stoic Jackie Robinson. He'll need to be a lot more aggressive and outward as Brown, so we'll see if he can get on the good foot and do the justice a role like this deserves.
Filming is set to begin this fall in Mississippi.[Variety]
