Ok, I confess. After Comingsoon.net confirmed a report that Johnny Depp will have a cameo role in the new 21 Jump Street film in development, I’m launching my one woman crusade to get Holly Robinson Peete on board. How can they NOT include Holly in this?
In case you don’t know, the film is based on the popular television series 21 Jump Street that aired from 1987 to 1991. The show was about a group of young cops whose youthful appearances enabled them to work undercover in both high schools and sometimes colleges to catch troubled youths. The cast included Johnny Depp, Holly Robinson Peete, Dustin Nguyen, Steven Williams, Michael DeLuise, Michael Bendetti and Frederic Forrest. It became the launching point for Johnny Depp’s career.
The new film currently being developed is going for an action comedy feel in the vein of Bad Boys and rocks a stellar cast that includes Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Brie Larson, Ice Cube, Rob Riggle, Dave Franco, DeRay Davis and Jake Johnson so far. Hill and Tatum’s characters will be going undercover to investigate the drug dealings at a high school. Ice Cube will act as their captain, while Franco and Riggle will play the villains. It’s being directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller.
When casting was first announced, there were plenty of groans and complaints regarding Holly’s replacement…understandably so. She was a pivotal figure as the lone black woman among the male dominated cast and didn’t need an ounce of fanfare to show how good she was. But we all know Hollywood films are based on “hotness” factors and so the idea of staying true to an original idea or formula is laughable.
Nowadays, Holly stays busy parenting her four children along with her husband, former pro football player Rodney Peete. In addition, she’s co-hosting the CBS chat-fest show The Talk alongside Julie Chen, Sara Gilbert, Sharon Osbourne and Leah Remini.
With all that’s going on in her life, I’m not sure if acting can be considered a priority for Holly but maybe for old times’ sake we can see her strike up a cameo in the new flick also. Are you listening producers?
