Queen Latifah Says One Actress May Not Be Enough For Her Biopic

Finding one person to play Queen Latifah may not be enough. As development continues on the Hip Hop icon’s upcoming biopic, she says the challenge is finding performers who can convincingly capture the different versions of Dana Owens that existed across her life.

Speaking at Variety’s Power of Women summit, Latifah revealed that an open casting call is coming and suggested the production could ultimately divide the role among multiple women. “Someone has to capture all the different sides of me, and that’s going to be a challenge to pull it off,” she said, according to Yahoo Entertainment. “They’re out there somewhere. It might be three people. We’ll see.”

She later joked, “My life is exhausting,” before adding that she may need “three of y’all” to play her. The comment suggests casting remains one of the film’s biggest unresolved pieces as the project moves forward.

The biopic was first announced in 2024 as the opening film in a planned series about major Hip Hop artists. Flavor Unit Entertainment is producing alongside Westbrook Studios and Jesse Collins Entertainment, with HarbourView Equity Partners financing the slate. Latifah and longtime business partner Shakim Compere are producing for Flavor Unit, while Will Smith is among the producers through Westbrook. Yahoo reported at the time that it would announce additional details as development continued.

Latifah’s latest comments make clear she is looking beyond simple physical resemblance. Whoever takes on the role will have to move through very different periods of her life on screen, and she is leaving open the possibility that no single performer will be asked to carry them all.