Whoopi Goldberg, Danielle Deadwyler to star in Chinonye Chukwu's 'Till'

As per Variety, Deadwyler will portray Mamie Till-Mobley, while Goldberg is set to play Till's grandmother, Alma Carthan.

Goldberg will also serve as a producer on the forthcoming project, for MGM's Orion Pictures, alongside Keith Beauchamp, Barbara Broccoli, Thomas K. Levine, Michael JP Reilly and Frederick Zollo.

Speaking about the upcoming project, Goldberg said, "We have waited a very long time to bring this historically necessary important film to people."

She added, "And as we watch the repression of American History when it comes to people of colour it makes it even that more important. I couldn't be with better people: Fred, Barbara, Chinonye, Keith, Michael and Danielle."

Deadwyler, who is widely known for her role in HBO's 'Watchmen', said of being cast in the film, "It is a gift to learn the legacy and intimacies of our ancestors, those familial and communal, as is the life of Mamie Till-Mobley, a public leader and mother of the movement."

'Till' will focus on Mamie's decision to have an open casket at Emmett's funeral and to allow Jet magazine to publish David Jackson's funeral photos, in order to ensure people everywhere saw the true horrors of her son's murder. The decision from the grieving mother was a galvanizing moment that led to the creation of the civil rights movement.

"I am charged with humility and great will to embody her life at such an integral moment of personal tragedy and political rebellion, a boon to the civil rights movement, and to represent the joy in the love and life shared between Mamie Till and her beloved Emmett Till," Deadwyler said.

She added, "I am grateful for the women who support me as the one to carry the labour of this embodiment and as an inheritor of such a lineage. Much gratitude for Chinonye Chukwu, Barbara Broccoli, Whoopi Goldberg, Alana Mayo, and Pam Abdy, amongst many others, for the undertaking we seek to uplift and transfigure with this film."

In addition to directing the project, Chukwu also wrote the screenplay, based on a previous draft by Beauchamp.

'Till' is based in part on the original research for Beauchamp's award-winning 2005 documentary 'The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till' and Reilly.

The upcoming film is the follow-up to Chukwu's critically acclaimed film 'Clemency', starring Alfre Woodard and Aldis Hodge, which won the Sundance grand jury prize.

"I'm honoured to be partnering with MGM's Orion Pictures and an incredible producing team in telling a story that will delve deeply into the humanities of Mamie and Emmett, the love and joy they shared, and the activist consciousness that grows within Mamie as she seeks justice for her son," Chukwu said.

About the film's stars, she added, "I'm thrilled to be working with Danielle, a powerhouse of an actor, who will bring a brilliant complexity and groundedness to her portrayal of Mamie. And it is a dream come true to be working with the legendary Whoopi Goldberg, especially in telling this story."

Principal photography on 'Till' is set to begin in September in Atlanta.

Apart from 'Till', Deadwyler will next be seen in the Netflix western 'The Harder They Fall', HBO's limited series 'Station Eleven' and the Netflix limited series 'From Scratch'.

In addition to 'Watchman', Deadwyler has also appeared in 'Atlanta', 'The Haves and the Have Nots', 'Greenleaf' and 'Paradise Lost'.

Goldberg is the only Black woman to have won the Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony, among 16 artists to do so in all.

Goldberg most recently appeared in the adaptation of Stephen King's 'The Stand' for CBS All Access and will next be seen in a recurring role on Amazon's 'Harlem'. (ANI)