Thug Life Army

Thru a joint effort between Voletta Wallace, the mother of Christopher Wallace aka Notorious B.I.G., rap and hip-hop label owner P. Diddy and "Training Day" director Antoine Fuqua; Notorious B.I.G. is to come to the big screen.

Unlike the recent "Tupac: Resurrection,"a documentary on the life of rap icon Tupac Shakur;  Biggie's still-untitled project will not be a documentary. Wayne Barrow, who still handles B.I.G.'s affairs and manages the late rapper's mom, Voletta Wallace, said they''re in talks with several studios, including MTV Films.

Puffy will aid the production creatively, and Barrow and partner Mark Pitts have recruited Cheo Hodari Coker, author of "Unbelievable: The Life, Death and Afterlife of the Notorious B.I.G.," to write the screenplay. Barrow described the film as focusing on Biggie the man, son and father, including little-known tidbits, such as his knack for West Indian cooking. A finished script is expected by summertime.

In the meantime, the production team must find an actor worthy of filling Biggie's Timberlands.

"It's going to be challenging to cast a B.I.G.," Barrow said. "We''ve thrown a few names around, like Big O [actor Waverly W. Alford II] from ''8 Mile.'' Maybe Anthony Anderson, because he has the humor. A few people said Guerilla Black, but we don''t know how that's going to play out."

Casting the roles of other rap and hip-hop artists like Lil'' Kim, Faith Evans, Junior M.A.F.I.A. and Puffy will depend upon the size of their roles in the finished script, Barrow said, and the artists may even be invited to play themselves, depending on their availability.

Barrow said the movie is on track to begin filming as early as February 2006.

In other related Biggie news Voletta Wallace, is making progress with her lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department for the wrongful death of her son Christopher. Though it was initially supposed to go to trial this April, the case was continued because of the unavailability of a key witness, and is now scheduled to go to trial on June 14th. Meanwhile, Wallace has signed a book deal with Simon & Schuster.

Source