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Aretha Franklin biopic 'Respect' to debut on August 14, 2020

The Queen of Soul - Aretha Franklin

S&A is reporting that the highly anticipated Aretha Franklin biopic RESPECT is set to debut on August 14, 2020. The film will follow the “Queen of Soul” from her humble beginnings as a singer in her father’s church to becoming one of the greatest voices of the 20th Century.

 

Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Hudson will star as Franklin and was selected by her before she passed away last August. RESPECT is being written by former Nashville creator Callie Khouri and is being directed by Liesl Tommy.

 

“The story of Aretha Franklin’s journey from child prodigy in Detroit to international supernova is rife with struggle and triumph, making her life one of the great American stories of all time,” Tommy said in a statement in January. “As a filmmaker there is no greater gift than to be able to bring this transcendent chronicle of a woman’s fight for self-realization to visual life with the enormous talents of the soulful Jennifer Hudson, Callie Khouri, and our incredible producers.”

WCLK will keep you posted as this project continues to develop. 

 

Ray Cornelius is one of Atlanta’s newest entertainment writers and media personalities. His arts and entertainment website, www.raycornelius.com spotlights the latest in “positive” African-American celebrity news and was established in 2012. Since that time Cornelius has covered a myriad of red carpet premieres, award shows and Atlanta-based films including Tyler Perry’s Temptation, The BronzeLens Film Festival, The Trumpet Awards, and The Steve Harvey’s Neighborhood Awards just to name a few. He has also interviewed a who’s who list of today’s top singers, actors and reality stars. With nearly 20 years of media experience, Cornelius has also worked as an associate producer for the Emmy-winning public affairs program, ATL Insider and with such award shows as The Soul Train Awards, The Trumpet Awards and BET Hip-Hop Awards.