Kat Graham will play Diana Ross in the Michael Jackson biopic.
The actor and singer is the latest star attached to appear in Antoine Fuqua’s film about the King of Pop as the cast of Michael continues to take shape.
Graham will play the role of the iconic Supremes frontwoman, who was asked to introduce the Jackson 5 to the world and remained a constant influence on the “Beat It” hitmaker.
Larenz Tate has been cast at the Motown Records founder Berry Gordy, who helped redefine music by giving acts — including the Jackson 5, Diana Ross and The Supremes and Stevie Wonder — the platform to succeed.
Other new cast members include Jessica Sula as Michael’s older sister La Toya Jackson, Liv Symone as soul legend Gladys Knight, Kevin Shinick as Dick Clark and KeiLyn Durrel Jones as Michael’s security-turned-friend Bill Bray.
Meanwhile, Kendrick Sampson is to portray music industry titan Quincy Jones, who first met Michael when the late singer was just 12 years old and eventually collaborated with him on the hit albums Off The Wall, Thriller and Bad.
The King of Pop’s nephew Jaafar Jackson is playing him in the movie, which is set for release in 2025. Fuqua has previously emphasized that the film will feature “the good, bad and the ugly” of Michael’s career, which saw him rise from child stardom to become the biggest pop star on the planet before he faced allegations of child sexual abuse and tragically died aged 50 in 2009.
“Just to tell the facts as we know it, about the artist, about the man, about the human being. You know, the good, bad, and the ugly,” the Training Day director told Entertainment Weekly when quizzed on his approach to the flick.
Michael’s eldest son, Prince Jackson, is also working closely with the cast and crew on set on behalf of his siblings.
