Liesl Tommy to Direct Lupita Nyong’o in “Born a Crime” Adaptation
“Queen Sugar” helmer Liesl Tommy is about to make her feature directorial debut. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the South African-born, Tony-nominated director has just signed on to the film adaptation of Trevor Noah’s memoir, “Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood.”
As we’ve previously reported, “Black Panther’s” Lupita Nyong’o is starring in the film as Noah’s mother. The project will tackle both the political and personal, as the book itself is “an account of growing up under apartheid rule in South Africa but also a love letter to [Noah’s] mother.”
Noah was “born to a white Swiss father and a black Xhosa mother at a time when such a union was punishable by five years in prison.” His very existence was therefore a kept secret until the shift in South Africa’s regime.
Nyong’o will also produce the project alongside Noah. No word on a writer yet.
“Born a Crime” marks a reunion for Tommy and Nyong’o. The former directed the latter in the Broadway play “Eclipsed,” which was written by Nyong’o’s “Black Panther” co-star Danai Gurira. The project, which follows five women during the Second Liberian Civil War, earned both Tommy and Nyong’o their first Tony Award nominations.
You can still catch Nyong’o and Danai Gurira in the record-shattering “Black Panther,” in theaters now. Tommy is currently directing a play in Boston.
