Wood Harris, Michael Rapaport, Faizon Love, Duane Martin, Tank and Bre-Z Join BET’s New Edition: The MoviePosted by Wilson Morales
May 19, 2016
BET’s original three-part miniseries NEW EDITION: THE MOVIE continues to dazzle with star power! Wood Harris (The Wire, The Breaks), Michael Rapaport (Boston Public, Justified), Faizon Love (Real Husbands of Hollywood), Duane Martin (Real Husbands of Hollywood), singer/songwriter Tank and Bre-Z (Empire) join the cast to bring the iconic music group New Edition’s story to life.
◾ Wood Harris will play Brooke Payne.
◾ Michael Rapaport will play Gary Evans.
◾ Faizon Love will play Maurice Starr.
◾ Duane Martin will play Louil Silas.
◾ Tank will play Jheryl Busby.
◾ Bre-Z will play Peanut Bell.
Written by Abdul Williams (Lottery Ticket) and executive produced by Jesse Collins (Real Husbands of Hollywood) for JCE Films, a division of Jesse Collins Entertainment, the three-night miniseries event is scheduled to premiere on BET in 2017. Principal photography is currently underway in Los Angeles.
The miniseries will be directed by Chris Robinson (ATL) with Brooke Payne, Ricky Bell, Michael Bivins, Ronnie DeVoe, Johnny Gill, Ralph Tresvant and Bobby Brown serving on as co-producers for the film.
Empire’s Bryshere Gray will play Michael Bivins as an adult and Dante Hoagland will play Michael as a child. Elijah Kelley will play Ricky Bell as an adult and Caleb McLaughlin will play Ricky as a child. Luke James will play Johnny Gill. Algee Smith will play Ralph Tresvant as an adult and Jahi Winston will play Ralph as a child. Keith Powers will play Ronnie Devoe as an adult and Myles Truitt will play Ronnie as a child. Woody McClain will play Bobby Brown as an adult and Tyler Williams will play Bobby as a child.
Written by Abdul Williams (Lottery Ticket) the three-night miniseries event is scheduled to premiere on BET in 2017 with principal photography starting in Los Angeles in May 2016.
La La Anthony, Yvette Nicole Brown, Monica Calhoun, Lisa Nicole Carson and Sandi McCree have also been cast in the miniseries playing the mothers of the iconic 1980s R&B/ pop group.
Anthony will play Flo DeVoe, mother of the young Ronnie DeVoe, Brown will play Michael Bivins’ mother Shirley Bivins, Calhoun is Ralph Tresvant’s mother Patricia Tresvant, Carson will play Ricky Bell’s mother Mae Bell and McCree is Bobby Brown’s mother Carole Brown.
New Edition laid the foundation for how modern-day boy bands look, feel, and sound. Boyz II Men, N’SYNC, The Backstreet Boys, and New Kids On The Block all took their cues from Ronnie, Bobby, Ricky, Mike, Ralph and Johnny. After 30 years of breaking hearts on the record and from the stage, New Edition finally gets the biopic that their stellar tenure in entertainment so richly deserves. This 3-part miniseries follows the group from their humble beginnings as kids in Boston to global megastardom – weathering the highs and lows of controversy, personnel changes, and the ultimate cost of fame.
“NEW EDITION: THE MOVIE” is executive produced by Jesse Collins (Real Husbands of Hollywood) for JCE Films, a division of Jesse Collins Entertainment.
