Hollywood Popular Artists

Nov 27th 2012, 17:30

By Hannah Soo Park

With his rockstar status and music credentials, it should come as no surprise that Grammy-winning icon Lenny Kravitz has just been confirmed for the role of Marvin Gaye in Julien Temple's biopic, set to start filming early next year.

Deadline reports that Kravitz is set to play Gaye in "Sexual Healing," which covers the Motown icon's final years, starting with his time in Europe in 1981 up until his tragic end on April 1, 1984. The film will also focus on Gaye's battles with addiction, attempt to finally get clean and struggle to revive his career with the help of British music producer Freddy Cousaert.

While we're not sure if Kravitz will nail Gaye's iconic sultry vocals, he certainly has the credentials to help him take on his first, major leading role—one that requires portraying a real-life icon and tackling the issue of addiction and substance abuse.

The musician-turned-actor is, after all, no stranger to the silver screen—he landed a supporting role in Lee Daniels' Oscar-nominated "Precious" and most recently played the rebel stylist Haymitch in "The Hunger Games" franchise. Kravitz is also set to join a star-studded cast, which includes Forest Whitaker and Alan Rickman, in White-House-set drama "The Butler," also directed by Daniels.

This will be the first Gaye project to overcome the hurdle of music rights, which delayed production for two other films about Gaye—one directed by F. Gary Gray and the other produced by James Gandolfini (with Jessie L. Martin attached to the leading role.)

How do you feel about Lenny Kravitz playing Marvin Gaye? Let us know what you think in the comments below and on Twitter!

Media files:
Lenny-Kravitz-Marvin-Gaye.jpg (image/jpeg)
Lenny-Kravitz-Marvin-Gaye-70x53.jpg (image/jpeg)