Da’Vine Joy Randolph to Star in Pharrell Williams Biopic!!

Da’Vine Joy Randolph became a household name with her turn alongside Paul Giamatti in The Holdovers, and has an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress to show for it. Now, Randolph appears to have found her first project post-Oscars win, as she is in talks to star in a musical biopic for Universal Pictures about singer Pharrell Williams, according to Deadline.

Randolph will star in the film alongside Kelvin Harrison, Jr., who will portraying Scar in the upcoming Disney prequel film Mufasa: The Lion King. Details of the film are mostly unknown, but it will star Harrison as Williams, depicting the singer’s life growing up in the Atlantis Apartments of Virginia Beach in the 1970s, according to Deadline. The film, directed by Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind helmer Michel Gondry, will serve as a coming-of-age musical — an unsurprising fact given the tremendous success Williams has had as an artist and music producer. Both Randolph and Harrison are also major musical talents, making them obvious choices to lead the film. No other casting has been announced.

Gondry will direct the film from a screenplay by Martin Hynes and Steven Levenson, the latter known for his work on Tick, Tick … Boom!. Though Williams is not starring in his biopic, he will produce the film alongside Mimi Valdés through his company i am OTHER alongside Gil Netter for Gil Netter Productions.

Randolph Has Had a Major Rise

Randolph‘s Academy Award win marks the culmination of a stratospheric rise in Hollywood. She got her start on stage in the early 2000s, garnering a Tony Award nomination in 2012, before transitioning to screen roles. One of her first breakthroughs came when she starred alongside Eddie Murphy in the Netflix comedy film Dolemite is My Name. From there, she had a number of recurring roles on film and television from 2019 to 2022, including The Idol and Only Murders in the Building.

It was her role in The Holdovers as cafeteria manager Mary, though, that made Randolph known across the country. Her performance as a mother trying to come to terms with the death of her son in the Vietnam War garnered Randolph not only an Oscar, but also a SAG Award, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe. While she didn’t sing in The Holdovers, Randolph is no stranger to musical parts, and previously played singer Mahalia Jackson in the Netflix biopic Rustin, about the civil rights leader of the same name. She will next be seen in the action film Shadow Force alongside Kerry Washington and Omar Sy.