LOS ANGELES,-- Golden Globe and Grammy Award winner and Academy Award nominee
Queen Latifah has signed on to star in and executive produce the Lifetime Original Movie Event,
Steel Magnolias, a television adaptation of the iconic play and 1989 film of the same name, reuniting her with her producing duo
Craig Zadan and
Neil Meron, from
the
Oscar and Golden Globe winning
Chicago and
Hairspray. (Zadan and Meron also produce Lifetime's
Drop Dead Diva and
Smash.) She will take on the role of 'M'Lynn' and star alongside an all-star cast that includes Golden Globe and multiple Emmy-winner
Alfre Woodard as 'Ouiser,' Tony Award winner
Phylicia Rashad as 'Clairee,' Grammy winner
Jill Scott as 'Truvy,' Adepero Oduye as 'Annelle' and
Condola Rashad as 'Shelby.' The announcement was made today by Nancy Dubuc, President and General Manager of Lifetime Networks.
(Logo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080424/LATH509LOGO)
Produced by Sony Pictures Television,
Steel Magnolias will be executive produced by Zadan, Meron, Latifah,
Shakim Compere (
Single Ladies) and
Shelby Stone. Kenny Leon (
A Raisin in the Sun) is set to direct the script that has been adapted for television by
Sally Robinson (
Iron Jawed Angels) and is based on the play and screenplay by
Robert Harling (
The First Wives Club).
Steel Magnolias is also a reunion for Zadan, Meron, Rashad and Leon, who last worked together on the critically acclaimed Emmy and Golden Globe nominated Sony TV movie of
A Raisin in the Sun, which won numerous NAACP Image Awards including Outstanding TV Movie, Miniseries, or Dramatic Special
and
Outstanding Actress in a TV Movie, Miniseries, or Dramatic Special for
Phylicia Rashad.
In an updated contemporary version,
Steel Magnolias chronicles the lives and friendship of six women in
Louisiana. Supporting each other through their triumphs and tragedies, they congregate at Truvy's beauty shop to ponder the mysteries of life and death, husbands and children - and hair and nails - all the important topics that bring women together. Production will commence this April in
Atlanta, for a debut in 2012 on Lifetime.
"The caliber of talent associated with this film is astounding and falls in line with our strategy to make Lifetime a first stop for the industry's best both in front of and behind the camera. Queen Latifah, Phylicia, Alfre, Jill, Adepero and Condola are some of the most celebrated women in music, film, television and stage – and we could not be more thrilled and honored for them to bring
Robert Harling's poignant story about the strength of women to a whole new generation," said Dubuc.
"It is an honor for us to be revisiting the classic Sony film
Steel Magnolias under the creative auspices of our producing partners
Craig Zadan and
Neil Meron, the acclaimed director
Kenny Leon and a team of brilliant actors including
Queen Latifah,
Phylicia Rashad,
Alfre Woodard and
Jill Scott," said
Helen Verno, Executive Vice President of Movies and Miniseries, Sony Pictures Television.
Queen Latifah is an actress, singer and recording actress who has amassed a wide range of accolades, including a Golden Globe Award, two Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, two NAACP Image Awards and a Grammy Award. She's also received six additional Grammy nominations, an Emmy Award nomination and an Academy Award nomination. Her film credits include the role of the feisty warden 'Matron "Mama"
Morton' in
Chicago, for which she received an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe nomination. She also starred in
Hairspray,
The Secret Lives of Bees, Beauty Shop and
Joyful Noise. For television
, Queen Latifah's role as an HIV-positive woman in
Life Support earned her
a Golden Globe Award, SAG Award and NAACP Image Award, as well as an Emmy nomination. Her production company, Flavor Unit Entertainment, she runs with partner
Shakim Compere.
Acclaimed stage and television director,
Kenny Leon's Broadway credits include the Tony Award-winning revival of
A Raisin in the Sun in 2004 starring
Sean P. Diddy Combs,
Phylicia Rashad and
Audra McDonald. He then reunited with this cast in 2008 to direct the television version of
A Raisin in the Sun which aired on ABC. Leon was nominated for a Tony Award in 2010 for Best Director for his work on
August Wilson's
Fences starring
Denzel Washington and
Viola Davis, earning them both Tony nominations and wins. In 2011, Leon directed the Broadway premiere of
The Mountaintop, starring
Angela Bassett and
Samuel L. Jackson, as well as
Stick Fly, which was produced by
Alicia Keys and stars
Dule Hill,
Mekhi Phifer and
Condola Rashad.
Alfre Woodard's work as an actor has earned her an Oscar® nomination for her performance in
Cross Creek and an Independent Spirit Award and Golden Globe nomination for her work in
John Sayles'
Passion Fish. Her extensive film credits include Grand Canyon,
Heart and Souls,
Crooklyn,
Star Trek: First Contact,
Down in the Delta,
Love & Basketball,
Something New,
American Violet,
What's Cooking,
Beauty Shop, and
The Family That Preys. For television, Woodard has starred in the Hallmark Hall of Fame production of
The Piano Lesson and the Showtime film
Holiday Heart, which earned her a Golden Globe. A four-time Emmy® winner, Woodard has taken home the award for her work in such series as
The Practice,
Hill Street Blues, and
L.A. Law , as well as the television movie
Miss Evers' Boys. Woodard also appeared as
Betty Applewhite on the ABC drama
Desperate Housewives. Most recently, Woodard garnered her 17th Emmy nomination in the role of
Ruby Jean Reynolds, mother to Lafayette Reynolds, on HBO's
True Blood. Her other recent work includes the CBS medical drama
Three Rivers , and on TNT's
Memphis Beat.
Tony Award winner
Phylicia Rashad is best known for her role as
Claire Huxtable on the long-running NBC sitcom,
The Cosby Show. In 2004, Rashad became the first African-American actress to win the Tony Award for
Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play for her role in the revival of
A Raisin in the Sun. She reprised that role for the 2008 television adaptation featuring
Sean P. Diddy Combs, earning her an NAACP Image Award for
Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Miniseries or Dramatic Special. Rashad's Broadway credits include
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Dream Girls, The Wiz and
Into The Woods. Her television credits include
Everybody Hates Chris and
Psych. Most recently, Rashad was cast as one of the leads in an NBC pilot entitled
Do No Harm which she is currently shooting. In 2010, she was featured in the film,
For Colored Girls, and appeared in the
Tyler Perry film
Good Deeds that was released earlier this year. Additionally, she stars opposite
Christopher Walken,
John Turturro and
Sharon Stone in
Gods Behaving Badly, which is scheduled to be released later this year.
Three-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter,
New York Times best selling poet, and critically acclaimed actress are only a few titles held by
Jill Scott. Named People Magazine's Top TV Breakout Star of 2010, Scott has been featured in every major magazine across Vogue, Instyle and Elle Magazine. Before having her recent album, The Light Of The Sun become the #1 record in the country and performing at The White House, the triple threat began her career collaborating with musical icons,
Will Smith, The Roots and Common in the late 90s. With a background in musical theatre, Scott started her career as part of the Canadian cast of
Rent, and has gone on to grow her true multimedia brand across books, clothing, TV and film. Her television credits include the lead role in the HBO/BBC miniseries filmed on location in
Botswana,
The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, a Peabody Award-winning show directed by the late Academy Award-winning director
Anthony Minghella. Additionally, she appeared in Showtime's
Cavedweller and LMN's
Sins of The Mother,
for which she earned an NAACP Image Award and was the second–most watched premiere in the network's history. In features, Scott has appeared in
Hounddog,
Tyler Perry's
W hy Did I Get Married? and
Tyler Perry's
Why Did I Get Married Too?
Adepero Oduye most recently received Independent Spirit and NAACP Image award nominations for Best Actress on behalf of her work in
Dee Rees'
Pariah. Oduye also had the honor of being on the cover of Vanity Fair's recent "Hollywood Issue." Born in
Nigeria, Oduye hails from
Brooklyn and is a graduate of Cornell University. Other shorts she starred in include
Gabriele Zamparini's
Water,
Rusell Costanzo's
The Tested and
Nadiah Hamzah's
Sub Rosa. Oduye's theatre credits include
Danai Gurira's play
Eclipsed,
The Bluest Eye and
Fela. She has made guest appearances on such television programs as
Louie, Law & Order and
Law & Order: Criminal Intent.
Actress
Condola Rashad recently was seen in the Broadway family drama,
Stick Fly, produced by
Alicia Keys and directed by
Kenny Leon. Rashad played 18-year-old Cheryl, the daughter of a maid to an affluent black family. She received rave reviews for her
New York City theatre debut back in 2009, playing 'Sophie' in the Off-Broadway show
Ruined. Currently, Rashad can be seen in a recurring role in
Smash alongside
Katherine McPhee and
Debra Messing and will soon be seen in the upcoming romantic comedy titled
30 Beats out in
June 2012. She graduated from the
California Institute of the Arts in 2008 and currently resides in
New York.
SOURCE Sony Pictures Television
