Queen Latifah is preparing to launch a casting call for her upcoming biopic, but the big question remains: Who will play her? In response, the Academy Award-nominated actress and cultural icon revealed that three actresses may be needed to portray different stages of her life.
Flavor Unit Entertainment, Westbrook Studios, and Jesse Collins Entertainment are producing the biopic as part of a planned slate of hip-hop films. Will Smith is also expected to play a key role in the project.
Queen Latifah says it could take three different people to portray her in upcoming biopic
Latifah, whose birth name is Dana Elaine Owens, addressed the upcoming biopic during Variety’s Power of Women summit on September 23, saying, “Someone has to capture all the different sides of me, and that’s going to be a challenge to pull it off. They’re out there somewhere. It might be three people. We’ll see.” The Grammy and Emmy winner and Oscar nominee added, “My life is exhausting. [I am going] to need three of y’all to play this.”
In a joint statement released in 2024, Latifah and her Flavor Unit Entertainment partner, Shakim Compere, announced the project and their partnership, saying, “We all came into this industry together, and Hip Hop has shaped every one of us.”
According to Variety, the statement said hip-hop has grown beyond music and made a lasting impact on culture and society. Latifah and Compere called it a “dream” to work with friends and colleagues who share their understanding of the culture. They also said these collaborators could help tell the stories that shaped their lives.
Jesse Collins described Latifah’s journey as a powerful story of triumph that deserves to reach audiences worldwide. Latifah broke barriers for women in the male-dominated music industry. She became a powerful voice in rap during the late 1980s and 1990s. Latifah also made history as the first hip-hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. She later joined the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
