Well, file this under information we didn’t see coming! Spike Lee will be directing a musical film from eOne on the launch and discovery of….viagra. The untitled film will see Lee direct from a screenplay he wrote with Kwame Kwei-Armah.
Deadline reports:
The original songs and music will be written by the acclaimed songwriting team of Stew Stewart and Heidi Rodewald, who previously created the Tony-winning musical Passing Strange. The musical is based on the David Kushner Esquire article All Rise: The Untold Story of The Guys Who Launched Viagra. It is inspired by the true events surrounding around Pfizer’s discovery and launch of the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra (Sildenafil), which was hatched as a treatment for heart-related chest pain only for researchers to find its game-changing qualities occurred below the belt. The little blue pill had immediate staying power in the global marketplace, perking up sex lives around the world.
The iconic filmmaker will produce via his 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, along with Matt Jackson’s Jackson Pictures.
Lee told the outlet, “First And Foremost, I Thank Ms. Jacquelyn Shelton Lee. I Thank My Late Mother For As She Would Say Taking “My Narrow,Rusty Behind” Dragging, Kickin’ And Screamin’ To The Movies When I Wuz A Nappy Headed Kid Growing Up In Da Streets Of Da People’s Republic Of Brooklyn. I Did Not Want To See Corny People Singin’ And Dancin’. I Instead Wanted To Play With My Friends On Da Block, Stoop Ball, Stick Ball, Punch Ball, Soft Ball, Basketball, 2 Hand Touch, Tackle Football, Coco Leevio, Johnny On Da Pony, Hot Peas And Butter, Crack Top, Down Da Sewer And Of Course-Booty’s Up. All The Great New York City Street Games That Might Be Sadly Lost Forever. My Father, Bill Lee, Jazz/Folk Bassist,Composer HATED HollyWeird Movies, Henceforth And What Not, Me Being The Eldest Of 5 Children I Became Mommy’s Movie Date. She Was A Cinefile. Thank You Lawdy She Didn’t Listen To My Ongoing Complaints About Musicals. So Finally Going Into My 4th Decade As A Filmmaker I Will Be Directing A DANCIN’,ALL SINGIN’ MUSICAL Spike Lee Joint And I Can’t Wait. My Moms Has Been Waiting TOO!!! And Dats Da Rodgers And Hammerstein Truth, Ruth.”
No other detail are known about the film as of now.
Photo: Getty
