NBA players could find themselves unemployed if the 2011 NBA season is canceled due to the lockout. However, Philadelphia 76ers star Elton Brand will remain employed as a Hollywood producer.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Brand has signed on as a co-producer of the film Tupac with Morgan Creek Productions. The film, which will chronicle Tupac Shakur’s life and murder, will be directed by Antoine Fuqua and co-produced by Afeni Shakur.
Brand owns Gibraltar Productions and received credits in the films Across the Hall and Rescue Dawn.
Brand, Fuqua and others who are associated with Tupac will have the pressure of making an Oscar-worthy film that mirrors or comes close to the critical acclaim of Malcolm X or Ray. Shakur’s complicated life provides enough material for a classic film. Notorious, a biopic about The Notorious B.I.G., provided an interesting look at the life of Christopher Wallace, but it lacked the depth needed for Oscar consideration.
Tupac is currently in production in Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas and Georgia. –amir shaw
