In 1988, the group N.W.A released their debut album ‘Straight Outta Compton,’ a groundbreaking work that helped establish West Coast gangsta rap as a formidable influence on music. Twenty-four years later, their story is hitting the big screen.
Universal Pictures is in the process of picking up F. Gary Gray’s biopic Straight Outta Compton from New Line. Back in April, the action director passed on Captain America 2 to get involved with the project, so obviously he’s passionate about it. Hopefully with Universal backing him, the film can move finally move forward — although Dr. Dre did tweet a picture from the suppossed set this summer, there has been zero word that it’s actually been completed.
Based on a script by World Trade Center scribe Andrea Berloff, the feature follows N.W.A’s original members Arabian Prince, DJ Yella, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, and MC Ren, chronicling their “rise to stardom, from being teenagers in poor Los Angeles neighborhoods to the breaking up of the band.” The group was no stranger to controversy, and among the subjects covered is Eazy E’s AIDS-related death – which made him one of the few high-profile casualties of the disease – and the formation of Death Row Records. [The Wrap]
Ice Cube – who split from the group in 1989 to pursue a solo career – is on board as a producer. Universal also acquired his comedy Ride Along from New Line last summer, making Straight Outta Compton the second studio trade with which he’s been involved.
Do you think N.W.A’s legacy would benefit from a biopic? What actors do you think should play the rapppers?