Erivo to Play Afeni Shakur in Snoop Dogg Biopic
The award-winning actress joins Jonathan Daviss in the upcoming Universal Pictures film directed by Craig Brewer.
By Hassan Lawson ·
Cynthia Erivo will portray Afeni Shakur in the upcoming Snoop Dogg biopic. Universal Pictures confirmed the casting to ABC Audio. The Tony, Grammy, and Emmy Award winner has been nominated for three Academy Awards. She will play the mother of the late rapper Tupac Shakur. Afeni Shakur was a former Black Panther activist. Tupac wrote his top-10 hit song Dear Mama about her.
Jonathan Daviss will star as Snoop Dogg, whose real name is Calvin Broadus Jr. Daviss previously played Pope Heyward in the Netflix series Outer Banks. The film is based on a script revision by Craig Brewer. Brewer also directed the movie Coming 2 America. Joe Robert Cole originally wrote the screenplay. The story follows Broadus’s life and his rise to fame as a musician.
The cast also includes Myles Bullock Be, Lauren London, Camron Jones, and Algee Smith. Other actors in the project are Tre Hale, Laya DeLeon Hayes, Olly Sholotan, Corey Champagne, Jonica Booth, and SwayvoTwain. Snoop Dogg is serving as a producer on the film. The soundtrack will feature music from his catalog.
Universal Pictures has a history of releasing successful music biopics. The studio distributed Straight Outta Compton in 2015. That film told the story of the rap group N.W.A. In 2002, the studio released 8 Mile. That film starred Eminem and included autobiographical elements. It won the Oscar for best original song for Lose Yourself.
Snoop is scheduled for a theater release on Aug. 6, 2027. The production marks another entry in the studio’s lineup of musical dramas. The film centers on the life of the hip-hop legend. The cast list confirms the roles of the key figures in Broadus’s personal history.
Source: KSLX-FM
