The New Aretha Franklin Biopic Has Big Name Stars Attached

Abeni Jones
November 27, 2019

The Queen of Soul passed away in 2018, leaving a lasting legacy of hit songs, 18 of which won Grammy awards. She received a Lifetime Achievement Award, was inducted into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame, and sang at Barack Obama’s inauguration.

Now, her life story will soon become a major film.

According to The Root, it will chronicle her “rise to fame in the 1960s and 1970s and some of her tumultuous relationships.”

Franklin started singing in her father’s church, and then was signed to Columbia records at an early age. She also became a mother at an early age - her first two children were born while she was a teen. But she pressed on.

Franklin didn’t break into fame overnight, recording for years before she had any hits. Her breakthrough hit album “I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You” was her TENTH album! She also survived domestic abuse in her relationship with first husband Ted White. Again, she pressed on!

These struggles and successes will be chronicled in the film, which is set to star Jennifer Hudson in the lead role, with Forest Whitaker, Mary J. Blige, Audra McDonald, Marlon Wayans, and Heather Headly also slated to play roles.

Are you as excited for this film as we are? We hope it’s made with the love and RESPECT she deserves.

We have a quick favor to ask:

PushBlack is a nonprofit dedicated to raising up Black voices. We are a small team but we have an outsized impact:

  • We reach tens of millions of people with our BLACK NEWS & HISTORY STORIES every year.
  • We fight for CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM to protect our community.
  • We run VOTING CAMPAIGNS that reach over 10 million African-Americans across the country.

And as a nonprofit, we rely on small donations from subscribers like you.

With as little as $5 a month, you can help PushBlack raise up Black voices. It only takes a minute, so will you please ?

Share This Article: