Grammy-winning artist FKA twigs has officially signed on to portray Josephine Baker in a new feature biopic directed and co-written by Maïmouna Doucouré, best known for the controversial “Cuties” on Netflix.
The Baker biopic will launch international sales at the Cannes market ahead of a planned fall shoot. The project marks the first major screen adaptation of Baker’s life made with the approval and cooperation of her estate, including her sons Jean-Claude and Brian Bouillon Baker.
Baker, born Freda Josephine McDonald in St. Louis in 1906, rose to fame after moving to Paris in the 1920s and became one of the defining entertainers of the Jazz Age. Beyond her stage career, she later served in the French Resistance during World War II and became a prominent civil rights activist in the United States in the ’60s.
Doucouré, a French-Senegalese filmmaker, sparked controversy in 2020 after “Cuties” began trending on Netflix and promotional artwork for the film drew criticism from people who said it sexualized its young cast. Meanwhile, the biopic continues a growing acting career for Twigs, who has recently appeared in films including “Honey Boy,” “The Crow,” and “Mother Mary.”