Tyson Beckford and Michael Jai White are in negotiations to head up the cast of “Chocolate City,” an urban twist on the film made famous by stars Channing Tatum and Joe Manganiello.
“Black Dynamite” star White and model-turned-actor Beckford are in talks to star in the tale of Devin, a financially strapped college student who meets the owner of a male strip club (White) who convinces him to give amateur night a whirl. Beckford will play Adrian, the club’s former star attraction who finds his popularity fading as the new kid starts to steal the spotlight.
Jean-Claude LaMarre, whose 2006 Jesus biopic “Color Of The Cross” was released by Fox, wrote and is directing the pic, according to Deadline.com. He’ll also produce for his Nulite banner alongside Gabriel Casseus, Robert Aaronson and Rozina Negusei of Zanar Entertainment.
“This movie was in gestation for 2 1/2 years, but after ‘Magic Mike’ it seemed a natural fit for the African-American female audience,” LaMarr told Deadline. I researched the male exotic club scene and it’s massive across the country, with clubs specifically targeting middle-aged African-American women.”
The filmmaker has a deal with Eone’s non-theatrical urban features division but is hoping to shop it to a studio that can take ‘Chocolate City’ to theaters in a strategic rollout to urban markets where women flock to black male strip clubs, according to Deadline. The story also has a faith-themed subplot involving the protagonist’s struggle to balance his religious upbringing with his newfound career on the stripper stage.
“Chocolate City” is set to start production in Los Angeles in June. White recently appeared on The CW’s “Arrow.” Beckford appears in the upcoming drama “Addicted.”
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