Cynthia Erivo Cast as Tupac’s Mother in Snoop Biopic — SkimNews
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- Cynthia Erivo has been tapped to portray Afeni Shakur in Universal Pictures’ upcoming Snoop Dogg biopic, joining Jonathan Daviss as Snoop Dogg, Camron Jones as Tupac Shakur and SwayvoTwain as Notorious B.I.G.
- Afeni Shakur was a former Black Panther and political activist, and she was the subject of several of Tupac’s songs, including the 1995 single “Dear Mama.”
- Tupac Shakur was gunned down in Las Vegas in 1996 and died a week later; Afeni launched the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation one year after his death and oversaw his estate, dying in 2016 at age 69.
- Craig Brewer is directing the film, which is in production in California; producers include Snoop Dogg, Death Row Pictures president Sara Ramaker, and Imagine Entertainment’s Allan Mandelbaum and Brian Grazer.
- Myles Bullock plays Dr. Dre, Tre Hale plays Suge Knight, Lauren London plays Snoop’s mother Beverly Tate, and Laya DeLeon Hayes plays Snoop’s wife Shante.
- The Snoop Dogg biopic is expected to arrive in theaters in August 2027.
Why it matters: Erivo gains a named role that gives Universal’s production an explicit Afeni Shakur presence, with her Black Panther activism, foundation work and estate stewardship defining the character’s historical context. The ensemble also includes portrayals of Snoop Dogg, Tupac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre and Suge Knight, with the project dated for theaters in August 2027.
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