Haddish will play the olympic runner, nicknamed, "Flo-Jo" in a new biopic. Haddish will also serve as a producer on the film.
Tiffany Haddish is going to star in a biopic about one of her idols, Olympic track and field star, Florence Griffith Joyner. Haddish will portray the runner, known by her fans as "Flo-Jo," in the film produced by Haddish herself.
Joyner helped popularize track and field with her record-breaking Olympic run and flashy sense of style. She was known for originating the one-legged running suit which has been seen on some of today's athletes like Serena Williams. Joyner is considered the fastest woman in the world, with many of the records she set in the 1988 Olympics yet to be broken. Joyner died in 1998 at the age of 38 of an epileptic seizure.
The Girls Trip star took to Twitter Thursday to share a Variety article announcing the news. She also vowed that she's going to work hard to honor the Olympian's legacy.
"My Heart is so full Right now! I can’t even explain how hard I am going to work to honor Her Legacy!," Haddish tweeted.
Sports studio, Game1 Co-CEO’s Basil Iwanyk and Greg Economou, and Melanie Clark of Haddish’s She Ready Productions will produce, while Jonathan Fuhrman of Thunder Road Pictures will serve as an executive producer on the biopic.
"We are thrilled to partner with Tiffany on such an important project," Iwanyk said in a statement obtained by Variety. "Tiffany has established herself as one of the greatest entertainers in the world today – helping her tell the story of her idol Flo-Jo is an amazing honor and privilege."
For Haddish, the project is about telling Flo-Jo's story the way it should be told.
"I am looking forward to telling Flo-Jo’s story the way it should be told,” Haddish said in the statement. "My goal with this film is making sure that younger generations know my ‘she-ro’ Flo-Jo, the fastest woman in the world to this day, existed."
Flo-Jo’s widower and former coach, Al Joyner, will serve as a producer and creative consultant on the project and has already begun training Haddish for the role.
"I am so elated to team up with game1 and Tiffany Haddish on this project," Joyner added. "Working with Tiffany has been a great pleasure – she is incredibly dedicated, focused, and committed to portraying the spirit of Florence accurately, whose legacy of making a difference in the world will live on for generations to come. I hope that this film touches all who see it and inspires people to BE the change the world so desperately needs right now!"
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