It’s been five years since Cameron Crowe last directed a film, and many would argue that considering that last film was the disastrous “Elizabethtown,” it can only be a good thing that he’s taking his time over his next project. There was news yesterday that he’s close to starting filming on “We Bought A Zoo,” which may star Ben Stiller and/or Matt Damon, and today’s brought some more casting news on a future Crowe project.
The director has been working on a biopic of soul legend Marvin Gaye for years over at Sony, but the project was thought to have stalled after Will Smith, who’s apparently given up on making decent, non-tentpole movies, turned the role down. However, news from Cannes suggests that there’s now some movement on the project, as Terrence Howard has told Deadline that he’s in early discussions with the writer/director to play Gaye in the movie.
Howard tells the site that “Nothing’s been signed on paper yet. Everybody who loves music will hate me if I get this one wrong.” As you can hear from the video below of Howard performing a song from his hilariously awful vanity album, he’s got a decent voice with a hint of Gaye in it. He’s a tremendous actor, so it seems like a decent choice, and probably better than Common, who’s been lobbying for the part recently.
There’s a variety of Gaye biopics in development, with F. Gary Gray supposedly working on one, and another version starring Jesse L. Martin from “Law & Order” and James Gandolfini, which was originally set to shoot in 2008. However, last week’s issue of Production Weekly (not online) suggests that the project, which is called “Sexual Healing” and focuses on the last few years of the singer’s life, is back on and set to shoot in October. Is Crowe’s version moving forward now in an attempt to beat the rival project into theaters? Might it even take priority over the recently announced “I Bought A Zoo?”
Our guess is that Sony don’t see the rival, independent project as a threat — it’s the “Who Do You Love?” to Crowe’s “Cadillac Records,” as it were. We imagine that “We Bought A Zoo” will go first, with the Gaye biopic filming late next year, but we imagine more news will follow if and when Howard officially signs.
