In a post-Abduction world it's hard to have faith in John Singleton. Last month Taylor Lautner action film debut was an absolute disaster on every single level - from performances to writing to cinematography - and it's actually hard to believe that it was made by the same guy who directed Boyz n the Hood. Provided that Singleton understands what a trainwreck he has created, however, it could actually prove to be a good thing for his career. Maybe this will be the time where he takes a long hard look at his trajectory and makes a real attempt to change it. Part of that may mean going back to his roots, and now he may have found a project that will allow him to do just that.
According to Variety, Singleton is now in talks to direct the biopic about Tupac Shakur. The project was initially going to be directed by Training Day filmmaker Antoine Fuqua, but he dropped the movie this summer when he decided to work on the Eminem boxing film Southpaw instead (which has since been abandoned by Dreamworks). While still under Fuqua, the Tupac pic had trouble getting going as a nationwide casting call was unable to find the right actor for the part. The script was written by Stephen J. Rivele and Chris Wilkinson with the most recent draft completed by Brian Tucker.
There have also been rumors swirling around Singleton possibly helming Straight Outta Compton, the movie about rap outfit N.W.A., though Craig Brewer, F. Gary Gray and Peter Berg have also been mentioned as possible directors for that project. Vulture says that they are watching the performance of this weekend's Footloose very closely to determine if Brewer is the right man for the job, but when I spoke to Brewer a couple weeks ago he said that he is "still in the mode of wanting to direct things that [he writes]" but is keeping his options open.
Singleton actually has a solid connection to Tupac, as the filmmaker directed him in 1993's Poetic Justice. As for casting, why not cast Anthony Mackie, who did the role justice in the Biggy biopic Notorious? It would probably cure a lot of headaches.
