Marisa Abela lands Amy Winehouse role in Back to Black

Marisa Abela will play Amy Winehouse in the biopic 'Back to Black'.

The 'Industry' actress has landed the lead role in the movie about the tragic singer that is in development at Focus Features.

Sam Taylor-Johnson is directing the movie and it is understood that Marisa's audition impressed film bosses and put her in pole position to land the role.

Abela soon signed on and Focus moved quickly to land distribution rights for the project.

Taylor-Johnson was close friends with Amy before her tragic death at the age of 27 in 2011 and it said that her movie has the full support of the late singer's father Mitch Winehouse.

Various projects about Amy have been in development but none have come to fruition. The 2015 Asif Kapadia documentary 'Amy' proved successful and won an Oscar but was criticised for being "misleading" by Mitch.

Taylor-Johnson said: "My connection to Amy began when I left college and was hanging out in the creatively diverse London borough of Camden.

"I got a job at the legendary Kolo Club, and I can still breathe every market stall, vintage shop and street... A few years later Amy wrote her searingly honest songs whilst living in Camden.

"Like with me, it became part of her DNA. I first saw her perform at a talent show at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in Soho and it was immediately obvious she wasn't just 'talent'... she was genius."

The 'Fifty Shades of Grey' director said: "As a filmmaker you can't ask for more. I feel excited and humbled to have this opportunity to realise Amy's beautifully unique and tragic story to cinema accompanied by the most important part of her legacy – her music.

"I am fully aware of the responsibility, with my writing collaborator – Matt Greenhalgh – I will create a movie that we will all love and cherish forever. Just like we do Amy."