Respect director Liesl Tommy was joined by writer Tracey Scott Wilson, cinematographer Kramer Morgenthau and production designer Ina Mayhew at Deadline’s Contenders: New York award-season event Saturday to discuss their movie about legendary singer Aretha Franklin.
From a screenplay by Wilson, Tommy’s feature directorial debut stars Jennifer Hudson as Franklin and focuses on first two decades of Franklin’s life — from her upbringing as a musical prodigy through the loss of her mother to a rise to stardom that defied the constraints of an abusive marriage and a patriarchal system. Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald, Marc Maron, Tituss Burgess and Mary J. Blige co-star.
“Aretha Franklin, in addition to being a musical genius and a political activist, also had enormous style,” Tommy said on the panel for the film from MGM/United Artists. “I wanted this film to feel like a great big lush classical Hollywood film…...
From a screenplay by Wilson, Tommy’s feature directorial debut stars Jennifer Hudson as Franklin and focuses on first two decades of Franklin’s life — from her upbringing as a musical prodigy through the loss of her mother to a rise to stardom that defied the constraints of an abusive marriage and a patriarchal system. Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald, Marc Maron, Tituss Burgess and Mary J. Blige co-star.
“Aretha Franklin, in addition to being a musical genius and a political activist, also had enormous style,” Tommy said on the panel for the film from MGM/United Artists. “I wanted this film to feel like a great big lush classical Hollywood film…...
- 12/4/2021
- by Ryan Fleming
- Deadline Film + TV
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