Mary J. Blige, Forest Whitaker and more have reportedly been added to the cast of Aretha Franklin's upcoming biopic.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Blige, Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Tony Award-winner Audra McDonald, and Tituss Burgess will join Jennifer Hudson, who is set to portray the Queen of Soul in the biopic, titled Respect.
Previously, Saycon Sengbloh, Hailey Kilgore, Marc Maron, Tate Donovan and newcomer Skye Dakota Turner had joined the biopic.
Whitaker has been cast as Franklin's father, The Reverend C.L. Franklin, while McDonald will play Aretha's mother. Wayans will play Ted White, Franklin's abusive first husband, whom she married at 19.
Blige will play legendary singer Dinah Washington, while Burgess will play The Reverend Dr. James Cleveland, known as "The King of Gospel Music."
Liesl Tommy, the first black woman to be nominated for a Tony award, will be directing the biopic, while Oscar laureate Callie Khouri has penned the script.
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