Jennifer Hudson is earning everyone’s respect as Aretha Franklin in the new trailer for the upcoming biopic on the Queen of the Soul.
Released during the BET Awards, the trailer begins with Hudson singing his iconic song “Respect” (which was coined after the movie) with the word written behind it in giant neon-style lyrics before clips of his promotion to Fame.
The long-awaited film follows Franklin’s life from singing in his father’s church to becoming one of the most legendary musicians of all time. The Liesl Tommy-directed film also stars Forest Whitaker, Marlon Wayans, Audra McDonald, Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige, Marc Maron, Tate Donovan, Tituss Burgess, and newcomer Sky Dakota Turner.
Franklin, who died of pancreatic cancer at age 76, was part of the production of the film until his death in 2018. He received 18 Grammy Awards and was nominated a total of 44 times during his prolific career.
Originally, the film was scheduled to be released in August, but was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. It will now have a limited release in the United States on Christmas Day, before a full release on January 15.
Actress Cynthia Erivo will also star in her own on-screen role as Queen of the Soul in “Genius: Aretha”, however the National Geographic biopic was also rejected due to COVID-19. The limited series will now premiere sometime this fall.
Check out the trailer below.
