It looks like Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream will live on — in Jamie Foxx. The Django Unchained actor, 45, has been tapped to play the late iconic civil rights activist in an upcoming biopic directed by Oliver Stone, the Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps filmmaker confirmed to The Wall Street Journal.
"We're looking for a way to relate to this extraordinary man," Stone told the Journal of the film, which is described by the paper as an "authorized version" of MLK's life story. According to The Wrap, several members of the King family are expected to serve as executive producers.
The director/screenwriter — who has won Academy Awards for his work on Midnight Express, Platoon, and Born on the Fourth of July — has long been drawn to scripts with historical and political significance. He previously directed 1991's JFK, 1995's Nixon, and 2008's W. (about George W. Bush). He also has a past with Foxx: The two last worked together on the 1999 football drama Any Given Sunday.
Foxx is no stranger to biopics, either. He won an Oscar for bringing Ray Charles to life in the 2004 biopic Ray. He's currently filming the new movie adaptation of Annie with Quvenzhane Wallis.
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