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Ashton Sanders to Portray Bobby Brown in Upcoming Biopic I Wanna Dance With Somebody

Sanders currently stars as RZA on the hip-hop drama series, Wu-Tang: An American Saga on Hulu.

Whitney Houston will be getting the biopic treatment (albeit, for the 50-leventh time) soon, thanks to the upcoming feature from Sony and TriStar Pictures, I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

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Trump’s Tariffs Might Stick Around. What Should We Buy Now?
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While the role of the iconic late singer has already been solidified, (looking at you Naomie Ackie), Judas & the Black Messiah and Moonlight star Ashton Sanders has been tapped for the role of Houstonโ€™s ex-husband Bobby Brown, according to Deadline. As previously reported by The Root, the film will be directed by Kasi Lemmons with a screenplay penned by Academy Award-winner Anthony McCarten that promises to take viewers โ€œon an emotional, energetic journey through Houstonโ€™s career and music.โ€ The film is being produced in part by Pat Houston on behalf of Houstonโ€™s estate and Clive Davis, among others. The Photographโ€™s Stella Meghie will serve as an executive producer, as well.

Look, no shade to Ashtonโ€”and I mean that in the most sincere way possible, but: WAS WOODY MCCLAIN BUSY?? (The answer is probably yes because last I heard he was raising hell on STARZโ€™ Power Book II: Ghost, but still!) The guy practically is Bobby B at this point. (If you saw The Bobby Brown Story on BET, then you know what Iโ€™m talking about.)

Speaking of, while this film may have found its faux โ€œKing of R&B,โ€ the real Bobby Brown recently expressed his displeasure about the long-rumored forthcoming remake of the classic 1992 film, The Bodyguard, which also starred Houston. Last week, we told you the reboot had just found its screenwriter, Tony-nominated playwright Matthew Lรณpez to pen the โ€œreimaginingโ€ and snagged the filmโ€™s original writer-producer, Lawrence Kasdan of Kasdan Pictures to join in, too.

However, despite the massive success of the original film, per The Source, Brown isnโ€™t exactly feeling a modern-day reboot. When asked if he thought the film was a bad idea while zipping through the airport, Brown kept it short and to the point with a simple: โ€œYeah.โ€ Maybe if the casting is correct, heโ€™ll come around eventually, but like the saying goes: if it ainโ€™t broke, donโ€™t fix it.

I Wanna Dance With Somebody is expected to hit theaters December 23, 2022.

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