Teyana Taylor is going to play music legend Dionne Warwick in a new biopic according to The Root.
In a preview clip of an upcoming appearance on “The Tamron Hall Show,” the singer revealed she is “already working on” a project about the legendary artist.
“We’re already working on it,” Teyana smiled. “We’re in the building process right now. I always wanted to make sure I could lock in with any person that I would be playing.”
Teyana went on to list Angela Bassett’s role as Tina Turner in 1993’s “What’s Love Got to Do with It?* and Jamie Foxx’s portrayal of Ray Charles in 2004’s “Ray” as being particularly inspiring to her as she prepares for the gig.
“I miss when movies were like that, when you got to really get to know them and tap in,” the 32-year-old continued, before emphasizing just how much respect she has for Dionne. “I’ve always been a firm believer and stood on safety. She’s had a wonderful career, and I think right now is about making her feel as safe as possible to tell her story because a lot of these stories get misconstrued or extremely dramatized to an extent. That’s not really where we want to go.”
Back in December 2020, Dionne, 82, wrote in a Twitter message that Teyana would “obviously” play her in a biopic if such a project was greenlit.
“It’s never too late,” she began. “The same way they say, ‘Oh I went back to college at 40.’ I feel like that’s how it should be all across the board. It’s never too late to love. It’s never too late to give, it’s never too late to change, it’s never too late to show and give grace. And I think that that’s the most important thing is knowing that it’s never too late, and also knowing that a mother’s love is something that can’t be replaced or erased. So for me, it’s never too late for a mom to want to do better.
“Because the thing about it is, I feel like a lot of moms get blamed for putting their children up for adoption – not realizing that may be for the better. Because, ‘I don’t have it all the way together so I’d rather put you somewhere where I know you’ll be more stable than with me. And when I get my mind right, get myself together, I’m coming back for you.’ It’s the same way like when we lose something, we don’t say, ‘Well forget that then.’”
She continued: “We go and we get better and we practice more and we come back for that trophy. And that’s how it has to be with life! Not just in the tournament, not just in the game, not just who’s the best of the best of a contest. This is life! You gotta be willing to dust yourself off and try again. You gotta be willing to fall down and get back up.
A Thousand and One was released in theatres on Friday (March 31).
