Tiffany Haddish and Florence Griffith Joyner (Photo: via Getty Images)
#Roommates, Tiffany Haddish may be busy these days with her TV hosting duties and plans to become an adoptive mother—but she’s also headed back to the big screen by taking on the role of an Olympic icon. It has just been announced that Tiffany Haddish is set to play the legendary and glamourous track & field star Florence Griffith Joyner in an upcoming biopic.
According to industry insider @Deadline, Tiffany Haddish will tackle her most challenging role to date, as she has been officially named as the star of a Florence Griffith Joyner (also known as “Flo-Jo”) biopic, who she says was one of her life-long heroes. Tiffany will play the three-time Olympic Gold-winning track and field star and also serve as one of the film’s executive producers along with Flo-Jo’s husband and former coach Al Joyner. It’s no secret that in order to physically portray Flo-Jo, who was known for her incredible body and glamorous style, Tiffany has already started practicing many of Flo-Jo’s training methods and routines—and Joyner has also been training her personally to play his late wife.
The as-yet-untitled film is said to chronicle Flo-Jo’s inspiring life that led her to becoming one of the greatest athletes of all-time and also her sad and untimely death at the just 38 years old in 1998 following an epileptic seizure she had while sleeping. The project will also provide an in-depth look at her lasting impact in the world of sports, specifically track and field. Speaking about stepping into the shoes of the Olympic icon, Tiffany said “I am looking forward to telling Flo-Jo’s story the way it should be told. My goal with this film is making sure that younger generations know my ‘she-ro’ Flo-Jo, the fastest woman in the world to this day, existed.”
Similarly, Al Joyner also had encouraging words for the upcoming film, specifically Tiffany’s casting as his wife:
“I am so elated to team up with game1 and Tiffany Haddish on this project. Working with Tiffany has been a great pleasure – she is incredibly dedicated, focused, and committed to portraying the spirit of Florence accurately, whose legacy of making a difference in the world will live on for generations to come. I hope that this film touches all who see it and inspires people to BE the change the world so desperately needs right now!”
As the project is still in its early stages, no additional casting information or release date has been announced just yet.
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