Jennifer Hudson’s Debut as Aretha Franklin’s Respect

Jennifer Hudson Debut as Aretha Franklin in RESPECT movie is just AWESOME!

 Jenifer Hudson’s debut as Aretha Franklin follows the rise of Aretha Franklin’s career from a child singing in her father’s church’s choir to her international superstardom. From what I am reading, this movie is going to be sensational.

I did a little digging and here is what I learned about the making of RESPECT!

First, it has an All-Star Cast:

starring

Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin

Forest Whitaker as C.L. Franklin

Marlon Wayans as Ted White

Audra McDonald as Barbara Franklin

Marc Maron as Jerry Wexler

Tituss Burgess as Reverend Dr. James Cleveland

Kimberly Scott as Mama Franklin

Saycon Sengbloh as Erma Franklin

Hailey Kilgore as Carolyn Franklin

Heather Headley as Clara Ward

Skye Dakota Turner as Young Aretha Franklin

Tate Donovan as John Hammond

and

Mary J. Blige as Dinah Washington

In addition:

Director Liesl Tommy makes her feature film debut with Respect. Tommy is the first Black woman ever nominated for a Tony award for Best Direction of a Play in 2016 for Eclipsed and is an Associate Artist at the Berkeley Rep and an Artist Trustee with the Sundance Institute’s Board of Trustees.
The story was written by Callie Khouri (Oscar® winner for Writing, Thelma & Louise) and Tracey Scott Wilson, and screenplay written by Tracey Scott Wilson. Wilson and Tommy have worked together creatively since the 2009 play The Good Negro written by Wilson, directed by Tommy at The Public Theatre. Wilson was a writer on FX’s The Americans which garnered her a Peabody Award as well as Emmy® and WGA Award nominations.

Quotes:

“Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, we know her as this legend but there is a story to everyone. Her life had so much depth to it, and it came through the music.”

Jennifer Hudson

“My dream for the film — and for Aretha and her legacy — was to create a piece of cinema that feels like a classic you have to see in a movie theater. You have to see it on a big screen because her life was so big it deserved that.”

Liesl Tommy, director of RESPECT

jennifer Hudson-Respect

(l-r.) Brenda Nicole Moorer stars as Brenda Franklin, Hailey Kilgore as Carolyn Franklin,Saycon Sengbloh as Erma Franklinand Jennifer Hudson as ArethaFranklininRESPECTAMetro Goldwyn Mayer PicturesfilmPhoto credit: Quantrell D. Colbert© 2021Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer PicturesInc. All Rights Reserved

Now

, the combination of talent pulled together to make this movie, ain’t no joke, yall!  RESPECT opens in theaters on August 13, 2021, so tell all your family members and friends to get vaccinated and go to the theater to see this movie.