HOLLYWOOD, CA – The musical contributions Pharrell Williams has brought to the industry have been nothing short of legendary, having produced for the likes of Jay Z to Beyoncé, over to Britney Spears and Lenny Kravitz and back over to Sade, his own damn self — and many more.
So it’s only fitting the theatrical depiction of his life will actually play out in a theater. While most artists have been jumping on the biopic bandwagon since the success of Straight Outta Compton, The Hollywood Reporter has learned that a new project titled Atlantis is in the works that chronicles the solo Neptune’s childhood days in Virginia Beach.
The project will reportedly adhere to a musical theme as the Romeo and Juliet-style story plays out and Broadway director Michael Mayer will call the shots on the set.
FOX greenlit the pitch brought forth by Williams (a union that recently saw success with the film Hidden Figures that resulted in three Oscar nominations — including Best Picture) and producer Gil Netter. Although no start production date has been released, Williams and his creative director, Mimi Valdés, will produce underneath their I Am Other company and Netter will produce for Netter Productions.
Dynamic Duo: Valdés recently produced alongside Pharrell on Hidden Figures and will be tackling Roxanne Shanté’s biopic later this year.
Toy Story 4 writer Martin Hynes is also on board to write Atlantis.