Although Kasi Lemmons’ musical Black Nativity was scheduled to start production in New York this October, Fox Searchlight has put the picture on hold due to difficulty landing a male lead.  The picture is based off of a Langston Hughes play that re-imagines traditional Christmas carols in a gospel style.  Black Nativity was set to center on a young black teen who spends Christmas with the grandparents he’s never met: “Through his grandfather’s Christmas Eve sermon and a stylized, dream-sequence retelling of the classic Nativity story, he learns about the importance of faith and family.”  What’s strange about this news is that Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson (Dreamgirls) and Oscar nominee Angela Bassett (What’s Love Got to Do With It) are already set in supporting roles, yet top talent like Samuel L. Jackson and Laurence Fishburne have passed.  More on this after the jump.  [Update: We've updated this story with new information, which you can find after the jump.]

Writer/director Kasi Lemmons (Talk to Me) is developing a feature adaptation of the Broadway musical Black Nativity at Fox Searchlight.  If all goes according to plan, Lemmons will do so with a trio of Oscar-nominated talents.  Variety reports Samuel L. Jackson, Angela Bassett, and Jennifer Hudson are in talks to join the project.  The gospel musical follows a young black teen who spends Christmas with the grandparents he’s never met: “Through his grandfather’s Christmas Eve sermon and a stylized, dream-sequence retelling of the classic Nativity story, he learns about the importance of faith and family.”  Jackson and Bassett would play the grandparents, and Variety suggests Jackson will “likely play multiple characters during the Nativity sequence.”  Hudson is making a deal for the role of the single mother who sends the boy to the grandparents.

Hit the jump for a clip from a recent performance of the Langston Hughes musical.