By Creative Media Times
by Luther Campbell (Author)
Lionsgate is developing the biopic of 2 Live Crew, The Book Of Luke, reports Deadline. The script will be an adaptation of ‘Book of Luke: My Fight for Truth, Justice and Liberty City’, an autobiography of the leader of the rap group Luther Campbell.
Campbell, who was once a concert promoter in Miami, ran Luke Skywalker Records (later Luke Records after Star Wars filmmaker George Lucas sued) in the mid 80s. He later served as The 2 Live Crew’s manager and lead vocalist, while also giving the group a record label.
The book itself is about Campbell’s beginnings in Miami and his eventual fame and fortune. The book tells the story of how he “invented Southern Hip-Hop, saved the First Amendment, and became a role model for his disenfranchised Miami neighborhood.”
According to Deadline, the film will be some sort of “Straight Outta Compton meets The People Vs. Larry Flynt”. Campbell was party to a landmark copyright law case related to one of 2 Live Crew’s songs which includes a parody of Roy Orbison’s “Oh, Pretty Woman”. U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Campbell, establishing as a result that commercial parody can qualify as fair use.
RJ Cyler, who recently played Blue Ranger Billy in Power Rangers, will play Campbell in the film.
