After working for the better part of the last decade to bring the life story of legendary musician James Brown to the screen, producer Brian Grazer finally has a breakthrough. According to Deadline, he’s brought together Rolling Stones frontman Mike Jagger as producer, as well as The Help helmer Tate Taylor to director.
There’s no title for the project yet, but Jez Butterworth and John-Henry Butterworth, who scripted Doug Liman‘s Fair Game, have been working on the screenplay that will follow The Godfather of Soul from his poverty-stricken days as a child up to the height of six-decade-long career.
While Taylor didn’t show much style in his directorial debut, he does have a workmanlike approach that could serve to be a smart choice under the hand of a powerhouse producer like Grazer, especially for his passion project. With Brown’s remaining family on board, things are moving forward quickly with distribution being sought and (likely extensive) casting to find our lead. Check out a video of the icon performing one of his most famous songs below and we’ll update as more info arrives.
Who should play James Brown in this biopic? Is Taylor a smart choice to direct?