Source: Shadow and Act
From the looks of things, i.e. set photos, it appears the Nina Simone biopic is going forward with Zoe Saldana playing the lead part. Shadow and Act published a couple of photos they obtained from the set of the new film and what we see so far is pretty interesting.
As the site notes, no one is sure during which stage of the makeup process these candids were captured, but they do reveal some telling bits of the actress’s transformation. On the positive side, Zoe will be donning the afro which Nina was so fond of in the flick and it also appears teeth and a nose fashioned after the multi-faceted singer’s have been created for the actress as well. What remains to be seen is whether Zoe’s skin, which has been the major point of contention for her choice as the lead, will be darkened. I imagine if the artists have taken these other elements of Nina into consideration, they won’t neglect that detail, and it looks as though there is some darkening around Zoe’s neck in these pics. But you never know.
Source: Shadow and Act
Makeup job aside, in addition to details that Mike Epps is joining the cast as Richard Pryor. It’s also been announced that David Oyelowo has been cast as Nina’s manager, Clifton Henderson, whom according to the NY Times will be portrayed as having some sort of romantic relationship with her — much to the singer’s daughter, Simone Kelly’s, disappointment. So yes, more creative licensing to come.
But for now let’s just stick with what we see before us. What do you think of Zoe’s Nina Simone look so far?
