Jennifer Hudson heads to Detroit to watch âRespectâ with Aretha Franklin's family
The star of Aretha Franklinâs biopic is making her way to the Queen of Soulâs hometown.
Jennifer Hudson, Franklinâs handpicked choice to play her in âRespect,â will be in Detroit on Sunday for a host of activities, including a private screening of the film with the late singer's family and friends. Franklin died on Aug. 16, 2018, at age 76 from pancreatic cancer.
The Motor City visit comes as buzz builds for the film's release on Aug. 13.
A sneak peek of the biopic, which chronicles Franklinâs life and career from her youth through the early '70s, will play in about 500 theaters nationwide on Aug. 8.
Hudsonâs trip to Detroit is in tandem with Sunday's opening of a Detroit Historical Museum exhibit featuring wardrobe from the film. The exhibit, titled "Respect," includes 1960s-style costumes and accessories, along with Franklin artifacts from the museum's own collection. Among them: Franklin's handprints, which will be unveiled outside the museum.
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The Queen of Soul cast her handprints in concrete for installation on the plaza in 2017, when the Detroit Music Hall celebrated of the dedication of Aretha Franklin Way in the city, the historical society says.
They last were seen as part of the museumâs commemorative exhibit following Franklinâs death and are being placed on permanent display in conjunction with the movie's release.
The display will be housed in the museum's Motor City Music Exhibition space and will run through at least the end of August.
Hudson and âRespectâ director Liesl Tommy are scheduled to participate in an invitation-only reception and Q&A at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History on Sunday.
The Wright museum is also premiering a pair of outdoor pieces along Warren Avenue dedicated to the film, including an interactive mural created by Detroit artist Desiree Kelly and an âR-E-S-P-E-C-Tâ installation designed by Prop Art Studio.
âRespectâ also stars Forest Whitaker as the Rev. C.L. Franklin, Marlon Wayans as husband/manager Ted White, Audra McDonald as mother Barbara Franklin and Marc Maron as record producer Jerry Wexler.
Contributing: The Associated Press