Wanya Morris, Nathan Morris and Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men attend the 47th NAACP Image Awards Presented By TV One After Party at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium on February 5, 2016 in Pasadena, California.
Jesse GrantAmazon Studios, Davis Entertainment and Malcolm D. Lee’s Blackmaled Productions are partnering on a coming-of-age movie musical titled Brotherly, which will be based on the music of R&B supergroup Boyz II Men.
Brotherly will follows a group of men who, according to the project’s synopsis, “will return to West Philadelphia for a high school reunion 20 years after having gone their separate ways — eventually finding hope, redemption and a new understanding of the enduring power of friendship.”
In addition to producing, Lee is also in talks to direct the project, which will be written by Marcus Gardley, who is behind the upcoming The Color Purple movie musical adaptation as well as Marvin Gaye biopic What’s Going On.
From Philadelphia, Boyz II Men is known for emotional ballads that are peppered with a cappella harmonies, gaining prominence in the ’90s and earning four Grammy Awards throughout their three-decade career. The group’s prominent singles include “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday,” “End of the Road,” “On Bended Knee” and “I’ll Make Love to You.”
John Davis and John Fox, who were most recently in theaters with Disney’s Jungle Cruise, will produce the project with Lee via his Blackmaled Productions. Eric Bromberg, Joe Mulvihill, Davis Entertainment’s Jeremy Stein and Sheila Walcott will executive produce, as well as Boyz II Men’s Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris and Shawn Stockman.
Lee, repped by A3 and Del Shaw, was last behind the camera for Warner Bros. tentpole Space Jam: A New Legacy. Gardley, repped by WME, Manage-ment and Jackaway Austin, has a first-look television deal with Amazon. His previous screen credits include the series Maid, Foundation, and The Chi.
Boyz II Men are repped by ICM Partners.
This story was originally published by The Hollywood Reporter.
The world leader, who has repeatedly faced criticism for featuring songs from artists who do not want their music connected to his political views, shared a viral clip of We Can’t Be Friends (Wait For Your Love) that focused on the lyric: “Me and my truth we sit in silence.”
The footage shows Trump at a rally while the statement “Men can’t have babies and should never compete in women’s sports” appears on screen.
The Team Trump TikTok account posted the video with the caption: “This shouldn’t be controversial! #trump #arianagrande #maga.”
Ariana responded in a comment that was later removed, saying: “Never use my music again. Also, your truth is false.”
Trump has a well known record of opposing transgender rights, and the US Supreme Court recently ruled that states can prohibit transgender women from taking part in women’s sports. In a 6 to 3 ruling, the justices determined that such laws do not breach Title IX or the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause.
The decision in June came after several other actions by the Trump administration involving transgender policies. Earlier in May, the Supreme Court also permitted the administration to continue with its “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness” order, which would prevent transgender individuals from serving in the US military.
Ariana’s statement arrived soon after Taylor Swift also took steps to stop Trump from using her music on TikTok. Trump had featured a number of her songs in his social media posts, including a video of him and his wife Lady Melania Trump watching fireworks accompanied by August.
The song was later taken off the post and replaced by a notice that read: “This sound isn’t available.”
Trump appeared to deliberately select Taylor’s track, adding the message: “I’m sure @Taylor Swift is going to be super excited we used her song!”
He also responded to the Team Trump video with: “Mood because it’s August and Donald Trump is your president.”
Other Taylor Swift songs that were removed from Trump’s TikTok content included The Fate of Ophelia and Father Figure.
Trump previously made headlines when he wrote “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” on Truth Social after the singer publicly announced that she planned to support Kamala Harris in the previous presidential election.
