Kat Graham cast as Diana Ross in Michael Jackson biopic
Kat Graham will play Diana Ross in the Michael Jackson biopic.
The 34-year-old actress 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.
Kat 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 Jackson'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 went on to collaborate 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, set for release in 2025, and Fuqua has previously emphasised 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.
Quizzed on his approach to the flick, the 'Training Day' director told Entertainment Weekly: "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."
Michael's eldest son Prince Jackson is also working closely with the cast and crew on set on behalf of his siblings.