rita marley Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Bob Marley Biopic -- No Music, No Movie
Filed under: Documentary », Drama », Deals », Celebrities and Controversy », The Weinstein Co. », Newsstand »
Remember the news that we were going to see the first Bob Marley biopic? Well, according to The Hollywood Reporter, it's not going to happen any time soon.The problem centers on obtaining the rights to Marley's music for the film. Despite the fact that the film is being produced by Marley's widow, Rita, the sale of her book rights naturally didn't include rights to use any of the music. But one would assume, given the connection, that using Marley's music would be a given.
Not so. Because Martin Scorsese's documentary has already licensed the songs (and the documentary is being produced by the family owned Tuff Gong Pictures and Steven Bing's Shangi-La company), there is a great reluctance to license them for the movie. There is suspicion that the Marley family is using it as a negotiating tactic to up the licensing price, a claim their lawyer steadfastly denies.
Rita Marley To Produce First Bob Marley Biopic
Filed under: Drama », Music & Musicals », Deals »
I find it amazing that there hasn't already been a film made about Bob Marley's life. I suppose biopics are simply fraught with difficulty -- obtaining rights, trying not to anger surviving family, trying to cram an entire life into two hours. But now the first film is kicking into gear -- and the Hollywood Reporter has announced that none other than Marley's widow, Rita Marley, is set to produce along with Rudy Langlais. The film will be based on Marley's 2004 autobiography No Woman No Cry: My Life With Bob Marley, which has been optioned by the Weinstein Company. The book details the singer's childhood, their tumultuous 15-year marriage, the assassination attempt on the couple, and the singer's early death from cancer in 1981. Langlais is claiming the film will be an "epic romance," but Marley insists she doesn't want a glamorized version. "Every inch of me is in there. I don't want a fairy tale or Cinderella story."
Marley is hoping the film's cast will be a family affair. She wants her daughter-in-law, singer Lauryn Hill, to play her in the film. Ideally, her grandson, Stefan, who is "the spitting image" of the late singer, will play Bob. Will he play younger or older Marley? They are looking for two actors to play him, one at age 15 and one portraying his adult years. The film's script is already being penned by Lizzie Borden (what a name!) in Jamaica, with a release date in late 2009, which could even beat Martin Scorsese's authorized documentary to theaters. No director has been named.
Bob Marley's life has the potential to be a fantastic movie -- and I'm rarely interested in music biopics. I'm curious to see who they are going to cast. Will they really stay within the Marley clan? Who would you like to see on-screen? Who would you like to direct it?
No Jamie, No Cry: Foxx is NOT Bob Marley
Filed under: Music & Musicals », Casting », Celebrities and Controversy », Fandom »
Simmer Down. It turns out that Jamie Foxx will not be portraying reggae legend Bob Marley in a proposed biopic, as I reported last month. The Jamaican entertainment journalist Kevin Jackson managed to get the scoop from Foxx at the BET Awards, and the rumors were completely shot down. The Oscar-winning actor claims he has never been confirmed to play Marley, and flat out said he will not be taking on the role. Foxx clarified the origin of the rumor by adding, "What happened is I ran into one of his sons at a club the other day and that was about it."Well, that explanation doesn't make too much sense to me, but you never know how stories get started. My source was The Irish Examiner, of all places. Who knows what their source was? Perhaps Marley's son was complimenting Foxx's performance in Ray, said he'd be honored to have such a great actor play his father, to which Foxx said he'd be honored to play him, leading to Marley's son passing the casual words to his mother, who discussed it with someone else, and voilà! Instant miscommunication and instant rumor.
The biopic, to be directed by Rachid Boucharid and co-conceived by Marley's widow, Rita, is set to tell the story of the superstar's early days. The news that Foxx would be playing the part of young Marley caused quite some controversy, not the least of which is evident in the comments section of my original post.
Jamie Foxx is Bob Marley
Filed under: Music & Musicals », Casting », Newsstand »
Remember how absurd it sounded when Jamie Foxx was cast as Ray Charles? Well, prepare yourself for another outrageous announcement: Foxx is said to be starring as Bob Marley in a biopic directed by Oscar-nominee Rachid Bouchareb (Dust of Life). The film was conceived by Bob's widow, Rita, and Bourchareb says that he wants to show the reggae icon's life from childhood (he didn't lose a brother, did he?) through to his young adulthood and interest in Africa.
I feel pretty good about this film being made by the Algerian-born Bouchareb and after Ray, I also feel pretty good about Foxx. He doesn't really look like the singer, and imagining him in dreadlocks only makes me think of In Living Color sketches, but he might just be able to pull it off. I'm someone who doesn't mind departing from literal and identical portrayals of famous people, though -- I'd rather the actor play the character in the movie, not try to be a definitive representation of the real person. Then again, it is hard not to associate some singers with the actor who played him or her: Kilmer as Morrison, Busey as Holly, Spacek as Lynn, J.Lo as Selena, Cagney as Cohan.
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