Deadline reported in March that pop star Lizzo would star as rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Sister Rosetta Tharpe in an upcoming biopic. But now, news comes that Mick Jagger, in partnership with Live Nation Productions among others, is producing a feature film on Tharpe. This film appears to have no connection to the Lizzo project.
Oscar-nominated actress Aunjanue [ingenue] Ellis-Taylor has been tapped to write the movie, which has been granted the rights to Tharpe’s music by the late singer’s estate, according to Deadline. The producers have also secured the rights to the definitive biography of Tharpe, who died in 1973. A companion documentary is also planned.
In a statement, Jagger says he’s “so thrilled to be a part” of telling the story of the “trailblazing singer and electrifying guitarist,” adding that she “reshaped music history and influenced countless artists.”
Tharpe was a queer Black gospel singer, songwriter and guitarist who made a huge impact on early rock ‘n’ roll artists like Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Elvis Presley. Her electric guitar playing, in particular, influenced artists like Eric Clapton, Bonnie Raitt and Jagger’s Rolling Stones bandmate Keith Richards. Known as the Godmother of Rock and Roll, she was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.
As for the Lizzo project, it’s being developed and produced by an entirely different team and will focus on one event in Tharpe’s life: when she married her manager in front of 25,000 paying customers at a Washington, D.C., stadium in 1951 and then performed. The event has been described as “the first stadium show.”
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