Finding a single actress to portray Queen Latifah might not be enough. As work continues on the Hip Hop icon’s upcoming biopic, she explained that the challenge lies in finding performers who can authentically capture the different versions of Dana Owens throughout her life.
Speaking at Variety’s Power of Women summit, Latifah revealed that an open casting call is on the way and suggested that the production could ultimately split the role between multiple actresses. “Someone has to capture all the different sides of me, and that’s going to be a challenge to pull it off,” she said, according to Yahoo Entertainment. “They’re out there somewhere. It might be three people. We’ll see.”
She later joked, “My life is exhausting,” before adding that she might need “three of y’all” to portray her. Her comments suggest that casting remains one of the major pieces still being worked out as the project continues to take shape.
The biopic was initially announced in 2024 as the first film in a planned series focused on influential Hip Hop artists. Flavor Unit Entertainment is producing the project alongside Westbrook Studios and Jesse Collins Entertainment, with HarbourView Equity Partners financing the slate. Latifah and her longtime business partner Shakim Compere are producing through Flavor Unit, while Will Smith is among the producers representing Westbrook. Yahoo reported at the time that more details would be revealed as the project progressed.
Latifah’s latest remarks show that she is looking beyond simply finding someone who resembles her. The actress chosen for the role will need to portray the many different chapters of her life, and she remains open to the possibility of having multiple performers take on the character rather than asking one actress to portray them all.
