Grammy winner Erykah Badu has joined the all-star ensemble for Netflixs feature adaptation of August Wilsons The Piano Lesson.
The singer-songwriter (What Men Want) will make a cameo, delivering her soulful sound and eclectic style with musical performances in the film, starring Oscar winnerSamuel L. JacksonandJohn David Washington.
Jackson and Washington reprise their roles from thehighly successful Broadway revivalof Wilsons play, which recently received two Tony Award nominations (best revival of a play and best performance by an actor in a featured role in a play for Jackson).
Set in 1936 Pittsburgh during the aftermath of the Great Depression, The Piano Lesson follows the lives of the Charles family, a household led by Doaker Charles (Jackson), and an heirloom, the family piano, which is decorated with designs carved by an enslaved ancestor. Washington plays Boy Willie, Doakers nephew, a role Jackson originated in the 1987 production.
The Netflix adaptation is directed by Malcolm Washington from a screenplay he adapted with Virgil Williams. The film also stars Ray Fisher (Zack Snyders Justice League, Rebel Moon), Danielle Deadwyler (Till, The Harder They Fall), Michael Potts (Ma Raineys Black Bottom, Rustin) and Corey Hawkins (Straight Outta Compton, The Tragedy of Macbeth).
Fisher and Potts appeared alongside Jackson and Washington in the stage production, which was directed by LaTanya Richardson Jackson. After 27 previews and 124 regular performances at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre,The Piano Lesson was the highest-grossing revivalof a play on Broadway and the highest grossing Wilson production on Broadway.
Netflixs The Piano Lesson is produced by Academy Award winnerDenzel Washingtonand Academy Award nominee Todd Black. Executive producers are Constanza Romero, Jennifer Roth and Katia Washington.
The play is part of Wilsons 10-title American Century Cycle, that includes Fences and Ma Raineys Black Bottom, both of which were adapted for the screen by Denzel Washington and Black.