There has been much talk about the ‘Notorious B.I.G. biopic’ for many months after the production held an open casting for in hopes to find an actor who would fill in the shoes of the late rapper. It has now been announced that Jamal ‘Gravy’ Woolard is the lucky man that will play ‘Biggie’ in ‘Notorious.’
Yahoo!News gives us these details:
Derek Luke, Angela Bassett and Anthony Mackie also have been cast in the movie, the art-house studio said. Directed by George Tillman Jr. (“Soul Food”), it goes into production this month and is set for release in January.
Luke (“Catch a Fire”) will play Biggie record producer Sean “Diddy” Combs, who off-screen is an executive producer on the film. Mackie (“Brother to Brother”) will play rival rapper Tupac Shakur, while Bassett (“Akeelah and the Bee”) will play Biggie’s mother Voletta Wallace.
Like Biggie, Woolard was a drug dealer before he became a rapper. He had released a number of albums on indie labels in the 1990s before being signed by Warner Bros.
Voletta Wallace cited “Jamal’s charming personality, warm spirit, wonderful sense of humor and beautiful smile” as reasons for the casting. “He is a talented and charismatic actor, and I am excited that he will bring Christopher’s character to life,” she said.
I know there are probably tons of fans excited about this news, however, I can’t say I’m one of them. I just can’t believe it has taken 24 years for a biopic of Marvin Gaye to go into production, and it’s only been 11 years since ‘Notorious B.I.G’ died, and the public will probably be seeing both films come out the same year.
Sorry if I sound a little bitter, but out of all the other influential rappers out there, I was expecting a biopic on Tupac Shakur out before this one. I’m sure Biggie’s story will be an interesting one onscreen, but I feel that Tupac was a far more intriguing,charismatic intelligent and influential person,(the Academy award nominated documentary, ‘Tupac: Resurrection’ proves that) and it saddens me that the first time we will see him being portrayed onscreen will be as an antagonist.
However, this is a film a lot of people have been asking for, so hopefully it delivers. (I’m kind of surprised they didn’t cast the rapper ‘Guerilla Black’ as Biggie. His voice and looks are both uncanny to the late rapper.)
What are your thoughts?
Biggie’s Ready To Die Remixes:
http://rapidshare.com/files/167424826/K-Swyft__The_Bronx_Blend_King__-_Blend_Madness_Pt._17__Born_To_Blend_Ready_To_Die_Remixes_.rar
I think the movie is going to be great…I don’t Think that they will portray 2pac as the villan.. Biggies mother is 1 of the producers I dnt think she would disrespect 2pac or his mother like that…2pac did do and say some disrespectful things to biggie…and about the whole east coast…
I LOVE BOTH BIGGIE AND 2PAC MAY THEY BOTH REST IN PEACE
HARLEM ALL DAY….
what i ment to say was id rather c a movie about pac
i would deff rather a movie about cause i think there would be alot more too it and i garuntee there gonna make tupac look like the bad guy in the notorius movie
@Darren
Oh. That’s what I get for skimming the article:)
i’m not familiar with “Gravy” or “Guerilla Black” at all but i think Gravey favors BIG more. if his mom wants to tell his story so be it. if the BIG fans care they’ll go see it. besides, they better do it now b/c in 25 years BIG will not have the following Marvin Gaye has had over the last 25 years. Marvin Gaye is a true legend.
i know this story is about BIG but i agree that 2pac was way more interesting then BIG. primarily b/c 2pac’s career was much longer with more substance (he hit the main stream with “digital underground”). BIG had skills, one of the best at the time but, why when comparing 2pac & BIG, BIG supports break rap down into sub categories (lyricist, poet, mc??) to prove he’s better? never seen either live, don’t know how it went down in the studio, but on the cd’s 2pac vs BIG’s. IMO 2pac had better skills with storytelling & delivery. when they were simultaneously making hits. BIG had the club jams vs 2pac, but even MACE & LIL KIM had club jams with Puffy @ the helm. BIG didn’t have enuff material to fairly compare to 2pac. IMO. the sad thing is that 2pacs stupidity & arrogance got him killed & later, indirectly, led to BIG murder. i believe BIG was killed as retaliation for 2pac murder. Mainstream hip-hop needs to WAKE UP
I’m Sorry to inform you all, Jake is WRONG, Diddy aka Puff is no where near this project. The Ms Wallace (BIG’s) mother is calling the shots.
We all know the fuss about Diddy making money of BIG’s Passing, with his publishing rights & catalogues, so trust me when I say this. Diddy will be lucky to sniff a penny from this Movie’s profits (if there’s any).
Now to answer the Lovely Serena’s answers: Yes Pac was intriguing, charismatic & extremely polarizing, But Biggie was a bigger influence to the Art of Freestyling. Yes Pac was a far better lyricist & poet. But Biggie was a Way better MC, he never wrote his lines, got at the studio listened to the beat & stepped in the booth & straight ‘freestyled’. His rhyme patter revolutionized the art of rapping. He is considered one of, if not the best at dropping a hot16 aka 16 bars of the top
@Kristina
Derek Luke is playing Combs, not the Notorius.
@int’l friends
I don’t think for one minute that the film will make B.I.G. will be looking like a saint when he first started out. The WC/EC dispute should not be glorified on either side, but I would be disappointed if it didn’t play a part in the film’s narrative. As for Tupac- I don’t think he’ll be the bad guy as much as Suge Knight- Now we’re talking pitchfork and horns.
Is Luke going to have to gain all that weight, or will he rock a fatsuit?
oh ya guerilla black would be perfect imo too. good call
whats funny is that i studied pac and biggies life closely….the best part about the last pac movie was that it was real in his own words like when pac went on to say he let a gay guy give him head later to tell him that he wasnt going to return the favor…its real..but this movie is probly gonna be just a bunch of over zealous story tellers telling lies..BIGGY went to a good school…wasnt a gangster and was kind of a chump until he found his talent was rythming….so w/e p diddy is just a media whore and this will get his name out there again.
ps both pac, biggie, and most rappers are habitual liers that talk a good game but really are just scared humans in most cases. i feel sad for are youth….go watch iron man!
Jake is right as well, for me I don’t really care for this movie. It looks like P. Diddy is still trying to make money over his dead friend. That stuff happens. If I were making this movie I would switch it around that Biggie rises from the dead as a zombie and bites Diddy in revenge. Let it be called “The Biggie of the dead” or something
Anthony Mackie is the shit though
Jake is absolutely right. The [famous] people who were closest to 2pac at the time of his death were Suge Knight and Snoop Dogg. Suge Knight is down on his luck, and has filed for bankruptcy, and Snoop Dogg is busy with his career.
As a hardcore hip hop fan, I’d rather wait to see a 2pac movie done **The Right Way** instead of just rushing one out. Judging by the script review I read on this Biggie film, it doesn’t sound promising.
I think that the B.I.G. movie is being made before a Tupac movie because of Sean Combs’ closeness to the situation. He’s never been afraid to find business opportunities related to Biggie. I don’t know of any big movers and shakers with close ties to Tupac.
It’s funny you know.
FOX Searchlight put out an open casting call and put up all these videos of guys who wanted to be Biggie, but I guess none of them worked out well enough.
http://content.foxsearchlight.com/RUBIG
Do you suppose this is where they found him? Or could it be they just found a professional?