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Disney Hold Court for Queen Latifah
Wed Mar 19, 2:56 AM ET Add Entertainment - Reuters to My Yahoo!
By Michael Fleming and Cathy Dunkley
HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - Disney has made a preemptive purchase of screenwriter Michael Elliot's pitch "Just Wright" as a starring and producing vehicle for Queen Latifah.
Oscar-nominated for "Chicago" and still perched atop the box office charts in Disney's "Bringing Down the House," the Queen will get to play the princess in a modern-day retelling of Cinderella set in the world of pro basketball.
Latifah will star as Janice Wright, a physical therapist drafted by an all-star basketball player to move in and help him recover from a career-threatening injury. The hoop star then begins to fall for his therapist.
Latifah and her Flavor Unit Films partner, Sha-Kim Compere, will produce with Debra Martin Chase.
"This idea came about as I watched Queen Latifah looking great as she walked down the red carpet at the Golden Globes and a woman in the group said, 'Why doesn't someone put her in a romantic comedy?'," Elliot said. "They don't usually give actresses like Latifah those films, but as I looked around the room, most of the women there didn't look like Halle Berry (news).
"It took Tom Hanks (news)' clout to get 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding' made, but (star) Nia Vardalos (news) proved that you don't have to be Julia Roberts (news), Meg Ryan (news) or Halle to appeal to the real women who identify with women like Nia or Latifah."
Elliot used basketball for his film's arena because it's an arena he knows well. His previous script credits include the romantic tale "Brown Sugar," the kids basketball fantasy "Like Mike" and the upcoming Malcolm Lee-directed street basketball film "The Rucker" at Universal.
"I'm from South Philly," he said. "So while I know that when parents of my white friends say they want their daughters to marry a professional, they mean doctors and lawyers. Where I come from, they want them to marry professional athletes because they are our princes
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