Wesley Snipes joins Eddie Murphy for Netflix's Rudy Ray Moore biopic 'Dolemite Is My Name!'
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wesley Snipes will be joining the cast for Netflix's 'Dolemite Is My Name!' The biopic will chronicle the life and times of comedian, musician, singer, actor and film producer Rudy Ray Moore, best known as 'Dolemite' because of how he portrayed the uniquely articulate pimp from 1975 film 'Dolemite' and its sequels 'The Human Tornado' and 'The Return of Dolemite.'
Snipes most recently has appeared in movies such as Spike Lee's 'Chi Raq,' 'The Recall,' and 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,' but is recognized for prominent roles in 'Major League,' 'New Jack City,' 'White Men Can't Jump,' as well as portraying Marvel Comics character Blade in the 'Blade' film trilogy.
He joins a star-studded crew that already includes the likes of Eddie Murphy (The Nutty Professor, Dr Dolittle), Mike Epps (Next Friday, The Hangover), Craig Robinson (The Office, Brooklyn Nine-Nine), Tituss Burgess (s Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt), and Da'Vine Joy Randolph (Ghost the Musical).
Moore developed his 'Dolemite' personality during his earlier comedy records for which he earned the nickname of 'Godfather of Rap.' The movie, on which he spent a vast majority of his earnings, went on to become one of the greatest blaxploitation movies of the 1970s.
Moore's character was described as 'the ultimate ghetto hero: a bad dude, profane, skilled at kung-fu, dressed to kill and hell-bent on protecting the community from evil menaces. He was a pimp with a kung-fu-fighting clique of prostitutes and he was known for his sexual prowess.'
The actor described himself as a 'ghetto expressionist,' but little of his work would ever reach the mainstream white audience because his excessive use of expletives meant it was kept off television. Instead, they were primarily aimed at his faithful and enduring fan base, with Snoop Dogg even crediting Moore as one of his major influences.
For the Netflix biopic, Murphy will be starring in the role of Moore. Snipes, on the other hand, will be portraying D'Urville Martin, who is infamous for his arrogance and problems with alcoholism and who appeared in numerous blaxploitation films in the '70s, eventually coming to direct 'Dolemite' for Moore. Martin also played the villain, Willie Green, in the movie.
Craig Brewer, best-known for his 2005 movie 'Hustle & Flow' which won the Audience Award at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival, will be directing the film which Davis Entertainment's John Davis and John Fox are producing along with Murphy. Micheal Beugg is serving as the executive producer.
Hollywood Reporter reports that Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winner Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, who have previously written the likes of 'Ed Wood' and 'American Crime Story: The People vs O.J. Simpson', are penning the script.
Netflix is reportedly planning to launch the movie in 2019.