Five-time Grammy winner Jon Batiste will make his acting debut in the Warner Bros. movie adaptation of the Broadway musical “The Color Purple“.
Batiste will play Grady, a debonair, sweet-talking piano man who is the epitome of charm and eloquence and husband of Shug Avery (Taraji P. Henson). Bennet Guillory played the role in Steven Spielberg’s 1985 movie.
The Tony-winning musical itself is an adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name.
“The Color Purple” tells the story of the struggles of a Black southern woman over the course of four decades.
The novel was first adapted into a movie in 1985, which was directed by Steven Spielberg and scripted by Menno Meyjes. In 2005, the novel was adapted into a Tony-winning stage musical on Broadway.
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The Color Purple (1985)[/caption]
The project was announced in 2018. The cast also includes Fantasia Barrino, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, Louis Gossett Jr., and David Alan Grier.
The movie features Ciara portraying an adult version of Nettie. A younger version of the character will also be played by Halle Bailey.
It also sees H.E.R. as Squeak, who goes from a juke joint waitress to an aspiring singer in the musical. The role was previously played by Rae Dawn Chong in Steven Spielberg’s 1985 movie.
Ghanaian director Blitz Bazawule helmed the movie from a screenplay by Marcus Gardley.
Spielberg also returns to produce for his Amblin Entertainment production company along with Oprah Winfrey, who made her feature acting debut in “The Color Purple”, is producing the movie under her Harpo Films banner.
Scott Sanders and Quincy Jones, both of whom produced the Broadway musical, will as serve as producers.
Alice Walker, Rebecca Walker, Kristie Macosko Krieger, Carla Gardini, and Mara Jacobs are executive producers.
“The Color Purple” is set to be released on December 20, 2023.
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