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James Brown Biopic Welcomes Dan Aykroyd, Jill Scott to Cast

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With the James Brown biopic Get On Up set to begin filming this month, some big names have joined the production.  According to The Hollywood Reporter, original Saturday Night Live cast member Dan Aykroyd will portray Ben Bart, the president of the talent agency that represented the Godfather of Soul for decades, while actress/singer Jill Scott will play Brown’s wife in a role specifically created for her.

As previously reported, Chadwick Boseman, who starred as Jackie Robinson in the film 42, has been cast in Get On Up‘s lead role.  The Rolling StonesMick Jagger and his Jagged Films partner Victoria Pearman are co-producing the biopic along with Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer and Erica Huggins.  The movie will be directed by Tate Taylor, whose previous project was 2011’s Oscar-winning flick The Help.  Other actors set to appear in the film include The Help co-stars Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer, and Low Winter Sun‘s Lennie James.

Get On Up will follow Brown’s life story as he rises from extreme poverty to become the Godfather of Soul and one of the most influential music artists in history.  It also will focus on the late entertainer’s battle with drug addiction, financial struggles and arrest for domestic abuse.  The movie is scheduled to premiere on October 17, 2014.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio


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