Posted by | Ray Cornelius
After numerous auditions and tons of callbacks, casting for the three principal roles in the upcoming NWA biopic, Straight Outta Compton is complete and we have pictures of the actors who will be playing the iconic music stars.
First up is Jason Mitchell (pictured above) who will be playing the rap group’s founder, Easy E. Reportedly the actor has starred in four films including Contraband with Mark Wahlberg. If you recall, the deceased rapper’s son and daughter expressed interested in playing their father. However, Mitchell has come out the victor.
Next up is Marcus Callendar (pictured left), who has been cast in the role of Dr. Dre. Reported, Dre initially wanted Fruitvale Station actor Michael B. Jordan to portray him in the film. However, Jordan’s commitment to The Fantastic Four presented itself a scheduling conflict.
Last but not least is O’Shea Jackson, Jr. who will take on the role of his father, Ice Cube. This will be Jackson’s first major role and apparently was Cube’s top pick even though it was stated that children of the rappers would not receive any preferential treatment and would have to earn their roles.
Casting for NWA’s two other members, MC Ren and DJ Yella, have yet to be announced.
Straight Outta Compton is being directed by F. Gary Gray and will chronicle the rise of the influential hip hop group from Los Angeles. NWA endured controversy due to the explicit nature of their lyrics, and was subsequently banned from many mainstream U.S. radio stations. In spite of this, NWA has sold over 10 million CD units in the U.S. alone and is credited as the most important group in the history of hip hop/pioneers of gangsta rap.
Stay tuned as more casting news develops!
Photo Credits: AllHipHop.com
