Cynthia Erivo cast as Tupac Shakur's mother in Snoop Dogg biopic

Cynthia Erivo has been cast to play Afeni Shakur, the mother of Tupac Shakur, in an upcoming Universal Pictures biopic about Snoop Dogg.

The film's cast also includes Jonathan Daviss as Snoop Dogg and Camron Jones as Tupac Shakur. SwayvoTwain, the musician born Michael D'Angelo Archer II, will play The Notorious B.I.G. Myles Bullock plays Dr. Dre, Tre Hale plays Suge Knight, and Lauren London plays Snoop's mother, Beverly Tate. Laya DeLeon Hayes plays Snoop's wife, Shante.

Afeni Shakur was a political activist who had been a member of the Black Panthers. She inspired several of her son's songs, including the 1995 single "Dear Mama". Tupac was shot dead in Las Vegas a year later and died a week after the attack. She founded the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation a year after his death and oversaw his estate. She died in 2016, aged 69.

The film is directed by Craig Brewer. Its producers include Snoop Dogg, Sara Ramaker, president of Death Row Pictures, and Allan Mandelbaum and Brian Grazer of Imagine Entertainment. Grazer was also behind Eminem's film 8 Mile.

The movie is currently in production in California and is expected in theatres in August 2027. Erivo is also an executive producer on a film adaptation of the Broadway play Prima Facie, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and opens in UK and Irish cinemas on 13 November. She also stars in the action thriller Karōshi, due in theatres on 5 February.