Steve McQueen Plans Tupac Shakur Documentary

Academy Award winning director Steve McQueen is planning an official Tupac Shakur documentary

Shakur Estate trustee Tom Whalley and Amaru Entertainment, the company created by Afeni Shakur to release her son’s posthumous projects, announced today that Nigel Sinclair’s White Horse Pictures and Jayson Jackson will team up to produce a fully authorized documentary with Amaru on the life of acclaimed hip-hop artist, writer and poet Tupac Shakur. What’s more, the Tupac Shakur documentary is set to be directed by Academy Award winning filmmaker Steve McQueen, whose credits include the acclaimed feature films Hunger, Shame and 12 Years a Slave.

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“I am extremely moved and excited to be exploring the life and times of this legendary artist,” says McQueen. “I attended NYU film school in 1993 and can remember the unfolding hip-hop world and mine overlapping with Tupac’s through a mutual friend in a small way. Few, if any shined brighter than Tupac Shakur. I look forward to working closely with his family to tell the unvarnished story of this talented man.”

“Tupac’s timeless message resonates today as strongly as it did when I first discovered him in 1990, possibly more so,” adds Whalley. “His legacy is unfortunately seen now through the refraction of the headlines, the controversy, and the tragic way his life ended. With this film, we will show the artist and the young man who existed beyond the news. I have an obligation to both Tupac and Afeni Shakur, to make sure this project becomes realized. In the final year of her life, Afeni and I spoke often of her desire to have her son’s true story be told… Together, with the team we have assembled, I am honored to have the opportunity to bring the documentary Tupac started in 1996 to life.”

“I am happy to see this project come to life,” says Cox. “This was something that my nephew (Tupac) was very passionate about creating in 1996, and my sister (Afeni) since before her passing this last May. It has been a long journey to get here… I feel like we have a team she (Afeni) would be very pleased with. It has never been our intention to rewrite the story of Tupac. Our goal has always been to tell the true story, which has never been done before in such a complete way. My sister always said to me, ‘We are not in the business of defending Tupac. Our job is to allow him to be seen in the most complete way, so his actions, his choices, and his words will allow him to speak for himself.’ I believe this film will do exactly that.”

Jayson Jackson (What Happened, Miss Simone?) and White Horse Pictures’ Nigel Sinclair (The Beatles: Eight Days a Week – The Touring Years) and Nicholas Ferrall, together with Shakur Estate Trustee Tom Whalley. Gloria Cox, Tupac Shakur’s aunt and Afeni Shakur’s only sister, will executive produce along with White Horse’s Jeanne Elfant Festa. White Horse’s Cassidy Hartmann will serve as co-executive producer. Marc Ambrose (The Beatles: Eight Days a Week – The Touring Years) will serve as supervising producer.

The Tupac Shakur documentary will be produced with the full cooperation and the assistance of The Shakur Estate, and financed and distributed by Amaru Entertainment.

(Photo by Ron Galella/WireImage)

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