Tupac Shakur biopic casts Demetrius Shipp Jr as lead

The long-in-development Tupac Shakur biopic All Eyez on Me finally kicked off production with a lead actor in place. Newcomer Demetrius Shipp Jr has been tapped to play the rap legend, reported Ace Showbiz.

Producer LT Hutton chose Shipp as the lead actor because he appears to have a close physical resemblance to Shakur. 

No official announcement was made, but Shipp has confirmed the casting news by posting some photos and videos from the set of the movie.

In one of the snaps, Shipp is seen wearing a caramel long coat atop a grey shirt with a black beanie hat. He also seen talking to his co-star Jamal Woolard, who plays Shakur’s former friend turned rival, rapper Christopher Wallace aka The Notorious BIG or Biggie Smalls. Woolard also portrayed Smalls in the 2009 biopic Notorious.

All Eyez on Me will cover the rise and fall of Shakur from his wild success as a rapper to his tragic murder in Las Vegas in 1996. Famous music video director Benny Boom is helming the movie, which is currently filming in Atlanta.

There is no official release date just yet, but the biopic is expected to hit US theatres in 2017.