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From The Hunger Games to “Heard It Through The Grapevine” — Lenny Kravitz is set to play Marvin Gaye, Deadline has confirmed. The part of the Motown legend in the Julien Temple-helmed film will be the first lead role for the Grammy-winning Kravitz as an actor, after he has appeared in supporting roles in Lee Daniels’ Precious as well as The Hunger Games. (He also will be seen in Daniels’ White House drama The Butler and in the upcoming sequel The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.) The Gaye project is scheduled to start filming next year and will focus on the time Gaye spent in Europe in the early 1980s, when the soul singer attempted to get his addictions under control and career back on track with the help of British music promoter Freddy Cousaert. Gaye was shot by his father and died in Los Angeles on April 1, 1984. Temple, a video and documentary director, helmed Absolute Beginners and, more recently, the 2012 Summer Olympics docu London: Modern Babylon.
Unlike past Gaye projects, music rights issues have been sorted out on this one, an insider tells Deadline. Back in 2008, The Italian Job’s F. Gary Gray was set to direct the biopic Marvin. That film hasn’t been forthcoming, and Grey’s now working on the NWA biopic Straight Outta Compton. Additionally, former Law & Order star Jesse L. Martin was going to star in the James Gandolfini-produced Sexual Healing, but their version of that project hasn’t happened either. Kravitz is repped by CAA and Craig Fruin of HK Management.
Deadline's Dominic Patten - tip him here.
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The film should be called What’s Going On and should depict Marvin in the late 60s and 70s when he was redefining music with his brilliant innovation, arrangement and song writing…. Marvin Gaye is the real King.
right on man. Why are they focusing on the lean years of this great man’s career? He did soo much between 1962 and 1972….Imagine if they made RAY , the Ray Charles picture and focused ONLY on the DRUG ADDICTION? Highly unbalanced…
One can only assume that Lenny’s voice auditions to play Marvin must be spot on, because without Marvin’s haunting voice singing Marvin tunes…Lenny’s acting chops won’t matter…and, you know Lenny won’t be lip syncing to Marvin Gaye.
Love the guy, but he better bust his behind for this one.Interesting project. Get this right Lenny! You can do it!
The BBC also spent over 4 years dithering over a terrific script by writer Stan Hey called Sexual Healing.
Lenny will most definitely be lip synching Marvin if they want to keep the appearance os some reality. Lenny is a good singer/musician in his own right, but God gave Marvin Gaye the texture in his voice that made him a star. It can no more be approximated than someone could approximate Lenny’s or anyone else’s. The tone and texture of one’s voice can’t authentically be duplicated. Replicated? Maybe, but not enough to be realisitc in this case. Marvin Gaye’s voice was very unique.
Kravitz? Okay, musician, I get it. But one more example of miscasting Black or biracial actors. “Black is Black” I guess, when it comes to Hollywood Casting Directors. This is the same fool nonsense that sunk the recent “Alex Cross” film (script problems notwithstanding). “Let’s cast Tyler Perry. He’s Black and he has a built in audience.” — APPARENTLY NOT. Regarding Kravitz, the producers should work harder to cast an actor who actually LOOKS like Marvin. You DON’T NEED a Kravitz to sell this story. There are thousands of other unknown Black actors, and I bet a least a few dozen who could fit the bill in this case. Obviously the producers don’t want their project to be well-received by its target audience. Again, can we get somebody who actually LOOKS like Marvin??? What ever happened to Jesse L. Martin from Law & Order? Almost a dead ringer. NOBODY, not even Kravitz, is going to sound like Marvin, but Kravitz will be hell of distracting because he doesn’t look like him. Better to cast Jesse Martin and overdub Marvin’s classic sound than to stretch, if not break suspension of disbelief watching Kravitz.
First Angelina Jolie plays an Afro Cuban, then Nina Simone, now this.
Seems the darker the country gets the more determined Hollywood is to put out lighter images. Before it’s all over they’ll have Michael Fassbender playing Martin Luther King Jr..WITHOUT the brown makeup!
What happened to the Jesse L. Martin movie on Gaye??? Thought it was in the can.
Jesse not only look like Marvin but has the ‘vocal smoothness’ play him.
Only one actor can play Marvin !!! Jesse l Martin , he even looks like him .
You are 100% right. Jesse L. Martin is the ONLY man who can play Marvin Gaye realistically. How can we make this happen? Can we sign a petition?
I agree ! Lenny can’t act , Jesse l Martin is Marvin ! Nit only does he look like him He sounds like him ?? What are they thinking ??
Jesse Martin has been robbed. What’s up with the miscasting of black biopics? (most recently Nina Simone) Then again, I guess I’m pleased we are even discussing the existence of upcoming biopics about African-Americans.
Looking forward to watching biop representing Marvin Gaye. Lenny has the charisma. Pos’e and the lips. His voice will compliment the passion and sexiness which Marvin Gaye brought to his audience. I say way overdo Bring to the screen Marvin’s strength overpowering and still he remained Gifted and Talented. .I still have my concert tickets for his preformance which was cancelled because of his untimely death. Marvin’s fan base has his sexual healing there are many who needs to experience his Soul healing. Let’s get it on in 2013. Lennyit’s all your bring Marvin bank to us in a way never seen before. We are in need of our Distance Lover.
I can see Lenny bring some solid talent an swag to this. But the
MG Man had way sooo much swag and talent as it is. How do you really do a talent like this justice in a biopic? Walking a helluva tightrope.
I was so sure I was going to be the only one to think Jessie L. Martin. My gosh he looks like him, did rent, the whole nine yards.Same body type as well. Not taking anything away from Kravitz but gosh visuals alone! I hope Jessie might have had a shot.
Kravitz can’t act. If Martin did not work out how about Anthony Mackie or Chiwetel Ejiofor.
If J. Phoenix could sell his voice as Johnny Cash,
Kravitz, Grammy Award singer, can sell Marvin Gaye.
Really liking how Lenny is diversifying his career. He was a great surprise in Precious together with Mariah Carey
Ok actor. Sham of a musical artist. Been living off one song his whole career.
Did I hear someone just say Jamie Foxx LOOKS and SOUNDS like Ray Charles? No, I didn’t think so.
You don’t need to “look” exactly like the person but must be able to embody and nail the essence of the character. Go back to casting high school plays everyone.
Jamie Foxx did resemble Ray Charles enough that audiences were able to believe his performance. I love Lennie too, but Jesse L. Martin would be far more believeable for all of the reasons other posters have mentioned. Sadly, even in 2012, white Hollywood continues not to get it. … Let’s just all boycott this movie, and the forthcoming biopic with Zoe Saldana and call it a day. … What would be even better is if Kravitz and Saldana, helped out the Casting Directors and producers who approached them and gracefully bowed out, knowing that they’re NOT right for these roles. Like Halle Berry publicly saying that she is not the right person to play Aretha Franklin in a biopic. This despite the fact that Franklin announced, without being asked, that she wanted Berry to play her. … Berry knows she looks NOTHING like Franklin. Berry is a size what — 2, 4? Even at her lowest weight in her younger years, Franklin was, at best, a size 10, 12. Not to mention, Berry is strikingly beautiful. She’d have to wear a fat suit even for the early years. Voice aside, Franklin is a very average looking woman.
How can we get Jesse L. Martin to play Marvin Gaye instead of Lenny Kravitz?
Why isn’t Jesse L. Martin playing the role of Marvin Gaye. He is FINE, just like Marvin was. What happened? Jesse was born to play Marvin Gaye. No one else can do this movie justice.
Jesse L. Martin – would be a perfect match to play Marvin Gaye. Noting against Kravitz – but the better man and actor is Martin!
Freddy Cousaert was not British but Belgium. He and his wife were my best friends Marvin Gaye lived here for a while in Belgium. My husband was Marvin’s best friend then. We knew Marvin very well, he visited my home several times. I hope his stay in Belgium will be in the film.
Veronica