Want to know a way not to promote film diversity in Hollywood? Have Shakespeare in Love's Joseph Fiennes play a black guy, even if that black guy is the cream-colored King of Pop, Michael Jackson. And yet that's about to happen in a new dramedy about a myth involving Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor, and Marlon Brando.
The film is being developed by Sky Arts from a script by Neil Forsyth (Other People's Money) and is based on an urban legend about a road trip taken by the three celebrities post 9/11 when airspace was on lockdown. They supposedly hit the road from New York City to California, but only made it as far as Ohio. According to Fiennes, who admitted the role was "a challenge", the trip took forever because they had to stop at a lot of Burger Kings.
Despite those comments, Fiennes calls the film "beautiful and poignant" and doesn't try to "poke mean fun" at Jackson. Stockard Channing has been signed to play Liz (What, no Lindsay Lohan? She looks old enough now.) and Brian Cox will play Brando, which could be epic. [The Guardian/WENN]
