

While Bazawule spoke about telling the story in "a joyful way" and Fantasia was open about how heavy the role of Celie is to take on, Winfrey got the last word. Bazawule took to the stage along with the cast and producer - and star of the '80s novel adaptation - Oprah Winfrey. And for me, I knew that it was going to be a triumphant journey right through struggle.While much of the footage shown takes place in an outdoor plantation setting, one clip shows a lushly designed interior set that Pearson says calls to mind the production design of Baz Luhrmann's "The Great Gatsby." In the scene, women sit at a table opposite Mister, and declare that "Celie is coming with us." Mister, a deeply abusive character in Walker's novel, snaps back, "I would die before I let that happen." Celie has her own excellent comeback: "Good, that's the going away present I've been waiting for."ĬinemaCon audiences also got a sneak peek at some of the singing and dancing that'll be featured in the musical, and overall, it looks like a stylized, energetic take on a classic story about the bond between women. As Bazawule put it, "You know, I feel like often when we think about specifically African-American life, there's a tendency to kind of narrow it down to the struggles, but nobody gets here without the duality of joy and pain.

'American Idol' season 3 winner Fantasia will play Celie and 'Orange Is the New Black' alum Danielle Brooks will play Sofia, it was announced Thursday during ABC News 'Soul of a Nation Presents: Screen Queens Rising.
#Color purple musical movie movie
The director also explained that while "The Color Purple" is full of hardship and tragedy, he also wants it to feel uplifting and victorious. The forthcoming movie musical of 'The Color Purple' has found its leading ladies. When speaking at a Q&A panel about his plans for "The Color Purple," the filmmaker said the he "wanted to create some of the most epic, boldest visual motifs," so he decided to use a magical realist style to create some of the film's most jaw-dropping moments inside Celie's "internal headspace." Speaking about the importance of the film, Winfrey told the press, "As long there is a need for self-discovery, self-empowerment, as long as there is a need for victory in someone's life, as long as there is a need for people to know what it feels like to be loved up and to be made full and hold to somebody else's love, there will be a need for 'The Color Purple.'"īazawule broke onto the filmmaking scene with the Ghanaian drama "The Burial of Kojo," but he's best known for helming Beyoncé's critically acclaimed visual album "Black Is King." Additionally, Bazawule is big into music himself, having released four studio albums.

In short, the film has a ton of talented producers who are all intimately involved with the material, meaning the upcoming film is definitely a passion project that's coming from a place of love. Lastly, there's Scott Sanders, who oversaw the Broadway version of "The Color Purple," along with Winfrey and Jones. Additionally, there's musical legend Quincy Jones, who was the producing brains behind Michael Jackson's "Off the Wall" and "Thriller" albums. She's joined here by the GOAT Steven Spielberg, who directed the original cinematic adaptation of "The Color Purple," which earned an Oscar nod for best picture. ("An Officer and a Gentleman"), David Alan Grier ("Joe Pickett"), Deon Cole ("Black-ish"), Tamela Mann ("A Madea Homecoming"), Stephen Hill ("Magnum P.I."), Elizabeth Marvel ("Manifest"), and Grammy winner Jon Batiste.įirst up, there's Oprah Winfrey, who actually played Sofia in the 1985 film and earned an Academy Award nomination for her powerful performance. Rounding out the cast, you can expect to see Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor ("King Richard"), Louis Gossett Jr.

of "I Can't Breathe" and "Fight for You" as Squeak, and Corey Hawkins of "The Walking Dead" as Harpo. Henson of "Empire" and "Hidden Figures" will portray Shug Avery, the singer who turns Celie's life upside down, and we'll also see big-deal names such as Danielle Brooks of "Peacemaker" as Sofia, H.E.R. The abusive Mister will be brought to life by Colman Domingo - an uber-talented actor who's been in everything, from "Euphoria" and "Fear the Walking Dead" to "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" and "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts." Similarly, Celie's little sister Nettie will be portrayed by two separate actresses, with Halle Bailey of "The Little Mermaid" portraying younger Nettie and singer Ciara (known for top five singles such as "1, 2 Step" and "Goodies") playing older Nettie.
