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Dr. Dre could have arguably landed the biopic of the year. There’s been talk about it for many years, but now the story of musical legend Marvin Gaye could be hitting the big screen.
According to Variety, Dre, who also produced the 2015 film “Straight Outta Compton,” is in the early stages of making the project happen, and he’s gotten approval from Gaye’s family to use his music.
But as Rolling Stone reports, Dre still has to get over a few more hurdles before the project gets made, like securing approval from Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown and Gaye’s label.
So far, there’s been a slew of failed attempts to get the film made by people like F. Gary Gray, James Gandolfini and Cameron Crowe.
And in 2013, the actor Jesse L. Martin from “Law & Order” fame, was supposed to star in a Julien Temple-directed film on the singer. That was until Lenny Kravitz was hired, quit and Martin was brought back on. Currently, there’s no word on why the making of the project was halted.
Then three years later, Gaye’s family gave Jamie Foxx the okay to create a limited series on the Motown legend, but nothing came of that either.
At this time, Dre hasn’t secured a deal for the movie to be made, but if studio executives were impressed by the critical and commercial success of “Straight Outta Compton,” they could give the former N.W.A. member the go-ahead.
“Straight Outta Compton” debuted in August of 2015 and by November of that same year, it earned a whopping $161.1 million domestically, plus, $200 million globally. It also became the highest-grossing film from an African American director at that time.
Not only that, the movie secured the top spot at the box office for three consecutive weeks and made $60 million in its opening weekend. It also won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay in 2016.
But Dre wasn’t just the producer on “Straight Outta Compton,” he also served as the creative consultant for director F. Gary Gray and gave him a lot of behind-the-scenes details.
“I sat with Dre for hours, sometimes days, going over what happened,” said Gray. “‘Tell me the story again. Tell me who was there. Tell me why this happened and what were you thinking and what was your motivation and what do you think Eazy was thinking.’ I didn’t want people to watch the movie and feel like they didn’t learn anything beyond what they could find on Google.”
As for Gaye, he of course was credited with shaping Motown’s sound in the 1960s, at first as a studio musician, then as an artist.
Some of his earliest hits include “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” “What’s Going On,” “Too Busy Thinking About My Baby” and “Your Precious Love” to name a few. He also won a Grammy Award for “Sexual Healing” and nominated for several other awards.
