Lenny Kravitz will play Marvin Gaye in Julien Temple's biopic

Lenny Kravitz is getting ready for what could be the biggest role of his life as an actor: late R&B singer Marvin Gaye. Rumors popped up last week that he might be taking on the role for director Julien Temple, but now it's been confirmed. Kravitz has been showing up in cool supporting roles more and more lately, from critically-acclaimed indies like Precious to blockbusters like The Hunger Games. This, however, will be a lot more demanding, and that's a good reason to be excited, because everyone is always super happy to see Lenny Kravitz suddenly show up in a movie!

Assuming this will be a good biopic, this could be Kravitz's first real starmaker. Jamie Foxx in Ray and Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line all saw their careers take a turn for the Oscar-y after they handed themselves over to play other famous people. Kravitz might even have an advantage since he's already an established musician, unlike the aforementioned actors, who were merely musically inclined. Temple's movie will be primarily about Gaye's struggle with sobriety while he stayed in Europe in the 1980s, so this will also be a nice dose (no pun intended) of heavy subject matter for Kravitz to tackle.

Photo credit: Down With the Capitol

Lenny Kravitz Is Set to Star in Marvin Gaye Biopic [Vulture]

When she isn't nerding out that the holidays are coming, Jamie is a reader at Monday Night Fan Fiction at Fontana's in Chinatown, NYC (next date: TBA, 7:00 PM). All work is original, written by the readers, so if you have a brilliant fanfic idea stuck in your head, send it via Twitter: @jamielikesthis

MORE: Entertainment • Julien Temple • Lenny Kravitz • marvin gaye • movies

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snagglepuss

Wasn’t there something a couple years ago about Don Cheadle playing Miles Davis in a biopic ?
awjt

It’s a very sad story about Marvin Gaye… he was murdered by his own father. But his music! Heavenly!
- capawesome
  
  Spoilers dude.
Stepan Arkadyevich Oblonsky

Looking forward to this… Julian Temple is a god of music based documentary Oil City Confidential especially
regeya

Makes a hell of a lot more sense than the notion of Kravitz playing Hendrix…
ChickieD

Please, no. He is all sizzle, no steak. I saw him play at Jazz Fest – I was actually kind of excited to see him live. I left his stage after a couple of lame songs. Dr. John’s guitarist out-Lennyed Lenny Kravitz a million times.

Now, I’ll give him this – dude can design:

http://www.kravitzdesign.com/
yupgiboy

He’d be better in a Lionel Richie biopic.

If this has to happen, I hope to GOD that they have him lipsync.
franko

he was in the Hunger Games movie? i just finished the first book, so i’m looking forward to watching the movie now. can’t imagine who he played. not sure i want to go look… maybe i will remain clueless and be pleasantly surprised.
capawesome

Will he be crying about Lisa Bonet in this too?
eldritch

In the words of the immortal and irreverent Dick Valentine: “I have never understood why anybody likes Lenny Kravitz”.