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Jack Kilmer has nabbed a leading role opposite Clifton Powell in B.B. King drama “The Thrill Is On,” Variety has learned exclusively.

Kilmer will play Michael, a young drummer who has a chance encounter with blues legend King (Powell), which proves to be the start of an enduring friendship. The upcoming film is based on the true story of producer Michael Zanetis’ own experience with the prolific musician, who died in 2015.

“As an actor and musician, Jack is uniquely qualified to portray our drummer on a mission. His passion for acting and music will ignite a compelling performance,” Zanetis said in a statement to Variety. “We can’t wait to see what magic this dynamic duo will bring to our film!”

Kilmer first broke out in 2013 with his starring role in Gia Coppola’s “Palo Alto,” and has since appeared in “The Stanford Prison Experiment,” “Lords of Chaos” and “Hala.

Four former members of B.B. King’s band — Walter Riley King, James “Boogaloo” Bolden, Michael Doster and Tony Coleman — will portray themselves in the upcoming drama “The Thrill Is On.”

Producer Michael Zanetis told Variety, “We’re honored to have these extraordinary musicians join us in our tribute to Mr. King. They traveled the world with him for decades and continue to keep his legacy alive.”

“The Thrill Is On” is a drama about King’s friendship with drummer Zanetis starring Wendell Pierce as King. The movie tells “the inspiring true story of how a chance meeting between Zanetis, a young musician, and B.B. King in 1980 led to King being the first blues artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1990,” according to a statement from production.

Variety reported on Oct. 25 that an official biopic of iconic blues musician King is going into pre-production in 2021, according to Vassal Benford,...

The late, legendary blues guitarist B.B. King was so influential, it’s going to take two biopics to tell the story. King’s estate is preparing a project separate from The Thrill Is On, which is set to star Wendell Pierce, according to Variety.

“We want to be crystal clear that the film announced by Pierce is not a biopic, as there are several major players involved in the new B.B. King biopic and the estate does not want there to be any confusion as to the nature of each separate project,” Vassal Benford, chairman of King’s estate, told Variety. “One is a docudrama, and the other is the official B.B. King biopic approved by corporate management of the B.B. King estate and trust as a part of B.B. King’s legacy initiative.”

The Thrill Is On will tell the story about King’s friendship with his drummer Michael Zanetis.

An official biopic of iconic blues musician B.B. King is going into pre-production in 2021, Vassal Benford, chairman of King’s estate, tells Variety. This is a separate project from “The Thrill Is On,” which is a drama about King’s friendship with drummer Michael Zanetis starring Wendell Pierce as King.

Confusion first arose when “The Wire” and “Selma” actor Pierce announced that he would play King via Twitter on Oct. 19. “We are official. Preparation has begun on a film where I will be honored to play the great B.B. King,” Pierce wrote. This led many to assume he would be playing King in a biopic retelling the late singer-guitarist’s life story.

Pierce expanded on the situation on Oct. 22, writing: “The Estate of B.B. King has requested I clarify the film ‘The Thrill Is On’ is not a biopic in the traditional sense. It is a dramatized version...

Not to be confused with the B.B. King feature film that Wendell Pierce is attached to star in (B.B. King And I)... First announced at the Berlinale in February, Gfm Films' feature-length blues documentary Bb King: The Life Of Riley, is narrated by Morgan Freeman, and includes interviews with the following and more: Bill Cosby, Carlos Santana, Bruce Willis, Bonnie Raitt, Eric Clapton, and others. The film covers not only King’s life and musical career. Director Jon Brewer, who has worked closely with King, shot more than 200 hours of footage for the project, and had this to say in an interview with Guitarist magazine (the December...

It's not the B.B. King feature film that Wendell Pierce is attached to star in (B.B. King And I), but we'll take it for now. First announced at the Berlinale in February, Gfm Films' feature-length blues documentary Bb King: The Life Of Riley, has been sold to a UK distributor G2, for a fall theatrical release.  Narrated by Morgan Freeman, the doc's interviewees include Bono, Bruce Willis, and Eric Clapton, as well as footage of King jamming with President Obama just 2 months ago. Director Jon Brewer, who has worked closely with King, shot more than 200 hours of footage for the project, and had this to say in an interview...

A filmmaker is suing B.B. King for allegedly interfering with his autobiographical film, B.B. King and I, about his long relationship with the blues legend and his success in helping King get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

King Size Film Production filed the lawsuit last week in California federal court and says that B.B. King has been attempting to use his trademarks and rights of publicity to interfere with the First Amendment right to tell the true story of Michael Zanetis (the "I" in B.B. King

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Here's a spotlight on some of the interesting and/or noteworthy projects that were recently added to IMDbPro's database of development titles:

The Comedian – Robert De Niro stars as an aging insult comic in this project written by producer Art Linson. Sean Penn is rumored to be considering this as a possible directing gig.

Myth – Fox's big sci-fi action flick got a lot of buzz this week when talk of an Avatar reunion between James Cameron and Sam Worthington began circulating. No deals yet, but it's a safe bet Avatar 2 will be their next project together.

Pitchfork – Named after the snarky, hipster music site, this dramatic thriller from the Duplass brothers centers on a grieving mother of an indie rocker who seeks revenge on a bitter blogger posting nasty things about her son.

B.B. King and I – Bunk gets his blues on in this true story written by Michael Zanetis & Melora Donoghue. Wendell Pierce (The Wire) portrays the titular legendary guitarist who befriends a young entrepreneur played by Patrick Fugit. Michael Schroder directs and produces.

Mountainheart – Happy-Go-Lucky's Sally Hawkins is set to co-star opposite Paul Schneider, Peter Krause and Miranda Richardson in this indie comedy from Girlfriends writers Dee LaDuke and Mark Alton Brown described as a woman's quirky journey to empowerment.

If you know of something in the works, you can submit it via our online submission form.