Kid Cudi says he will write, direct and star as Basquiat in “Jean”
Musician and filmmaker Kid Cudi announced on Instagram that he will play the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat in “Jean,” a film he wrote and will direct, Variety and Deadline reported. He said filming will begin in 2027.
The announcement: Cudi posted images of himself in character from a wardrobe test and said the wig was “just a rough,” Variety reported. “For years people have asked me about playing Jean Michel Basquiat in a film,” he wrote, adding that “no project actually came to be,” so he decided to write it himself, according to Variety and Deadline.
What he says the film will be: Cudi said writing it took “a lot of research, books, talks with people that knew him,” Variety reported. “This film will be a love letter to Jean, the 80s and NY city,” he wrote, according to Deadline.
His film work: Cudi has acted in Ti West’s “X,” “Pearl” and “MaXXXine,” Variety reported. He is making his feature directing debut with “Doe” and will also direct the horror thriller “Wrong Number,” in which he stars opposite Barbie Ferreira, according to Variety.
Other Basquiat films: Jeffrey Wright played Basquiat in Julian Schnabel’s 1996 film “Basquiat,” Deadline noted. Another film, “The Collaboration,” starring Paul Bettany as Andy Warhol and Jeremy Pop as Basquiat, has no release date, Variety reported. Basquiat died in 1988 at age 27, according to Deadline.