Tupac biopic finally gets the greenlight. Here's five ideas for who should play him. | Backbeat | Denver | Denver Westword | The Leading Independent News Source in Denver, Colorado
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Tupac biopic finally gets the greenlight. Here's five ideas for who should play him.

After being held up by years of litigation from Afeni Shakur-Davis, the mother of late rapper Tupac Shakur, the film depicting the rapper's life has finally been given the green light. Literally years in the making, the production company Morgan Creek has been mired in legal wranglings with 'Pac's mother...
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After being held up by years of litigation from Afeni Shakur-Davis, the mother of late rapper Tupac Shakur, the film depicting the rapper's life has finally been given the green light. Literally years in the making, the production company Morgan Creek has been mired in legal wranglings with 'Pac's mother who reportedly made extensive creative demands before she would turn over the rights to Tupac's music and life story.

The lawsuit came about due to Shakur-Davis' continuous negotiations long after the deal was closed. Alas, the two sides have finally come to an agreement and the biopic is back in production. Tupac, a revolutionary and controversial character, whose story in words alone is volatile. A visual interpolation must surely draw the same careful casting, if not more so, than the biopic of fellow slain rapper, Notorious BIG. We have a few suggestions.

5. Jason Weaver For a while there in VH-1 bad movie history, Weaver was the typecast off brand celebrity actor of choice. Last resort, you know.

4. Ja Rule We're serious here. Also from a place of physicality, Ja might be spot on. Acting skills aside, Rule has always been two steps from a drunken karaoke impression of Pac in his rhymes anyway, so this could definitely work.

3. Fredro Starr He played a bunch of b-movie gangsta bad boy roles, but from a perspective of, swagger, as they say, the Onyx aficionado of rowdy can tap into the lawless eloquence Tupac was most known for.

2. Omar Epps There was a bit of a debate on this one. Epps has been playing a Brooks Brothers-wearing doctor on House for a few years (and playing doppelganger to Pittsburgh Steeler's coach, Mike Tomlin), but he could pull it off. If for no other reason than that he played opposite Pac in the rapper's most villainous role in Juice.

1. Bokeem Woodbine Tupac had a loose head -- this we know. He also had a BALD head. On a purely aesthetic basis, this is a win. Oh, and the loose head and wild behavior? He's got it covered. Have you seen Woodbine's performance in Jason's Lyric? Yeah.

Hell, if all else fails, the producers can always tap Puffy. Joking! Kinda.


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