Antoine Fuqua Leaves TUPAC; May Helm SOUTHPAW Starring Eminem

If you were holding your breath for Antoine Fuqua’s (Training Day) Tupac Shakur biopic, you may want to go ahead and exhale because it looks as if its going to be awhile. 24 Frames reports that Fuqua has not only left the biopic which was slated to begin shooting this summer, but is now in talks to helm a boxing drama starring Eminem instead. Per the report, Fuqua’s latest squeeze is entitled Southpaw and comes from the pen of Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter. The film centers on a left-handed welterweight (Eminem) whose rise to the title is riddled with numerous trials/tribulations. The pic is currently set up at DreamWorks.

The report makes no mention regarding the reasoning behind Fuqua’s apparent departure from the Tupac biopic and is quick to point out that no formal announcement regarding Southpaw has been released as of yet. Nevertheless, a Fuqua-less biopic seems somewhat of a long shot given its long road through development and the director’s apparent proximity to the material. As for Southpaw, the film would be Eminem/Marshall Mathers’ first film since Curtis Hanson’s 8 Mile and potentially Fuqua’s first output since 2010′s Brooklyn’s Finest. Finally, in spite of the uncertainty of his biopic, Shakur may still have a presence on the silver screen in the form of his recently acquired screenplay Live 2 Tell which focuses on a teenage drug lord’s attempt to ditch his life of crime.