Tupac Shakur has been gone for two decades but the rapper is still one of the most influential names in music. However, biopic All Eyez on Me has released a new trailer which focuses mainly on another side of the controversial performer's life. While we still get plenty of Tupac's music, like the iconic "California Love," we also get a dramatic look at the man's life as an activist. Check out the trailer below.
While the new trailer shows us the rise to stardom of Tupac Shakur, it does so with a focus on what it was he wanted to achieve with that music. We see him growing up with a stepfather who was in the Black Panthers and how that helped shape his perspective and his desire to use his music to make positive change within his community. Of course, one can't make the type of change Tupac wants without getting the way of others and pissing people off, and the rapper succeeds at doing that without question. The trailer even goes so far as to tease us with how the movie will eventually end. It's not exactly a spoiler.
If there's one thing that All Eyez on Me has clearly done, it's cast the right person in the role of Tupac Shakur. Demetrius Shipp Jr. looks so much like the rapper that it's absolutely uncanny. While the trailer only gives us the briefest look at the actual performance everything we see looks and feels right. The film's success ultimately will rely on Shipp's ability to keep the audience believing that they're watching Tupac and so far it looks like he will succeed.
Bringing the story of Tupac Shakur to life has not been easy. The film has gone through numerous directors who all tried to bring the movie to the screen. There was even a lawsuit at one point over between the different production companies involved. For a long time, it seemed like the movie was stuck in development hell and that it would be there for a long time.
Eventually, however, it seems that things were worked out and the film moved forward. A great deal of that momentum can probably be attributed to the success of Straight Outta Compton. The 2015 biopic of rap group N.W.A. was a massive hit which won over both the box office and critics. There's little question that film acted as an inspiration for those involved here, showing them that there was an audience for films like this one.
All Eyez on Me is going to try to do one thing that even Straight Outta Compton avoided, find success in the midst of the summer movie season. The film will be competing with the likes of Tom Cruise, The Mummy is being released just the weekend before, and Pixar, because as Cars 3 is coming out on the same day. We're guessing All Eyez on Me won't be ignored. Tupac was always good at getting people to pay attention.
