Referred to as the "Queen of Soul", Aretha Franklin is one of the greatest American artists of all time. Known for hit songs such as "I Say a Little Prayer", "Respect", and "Never Gonna Break my Faith", over 75 million of her records have been sold worldwide. Franklin has placed ninth twice on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Leaving behind an incredible legacy, finding the right actress to play Aretha Franklin in a musical biopic could have been a very difficult task.
However, Liesl Tommy's film found the perfect actress to play Aretha Franklin in Jennifer Hudson. Like Franklin, Hudson is also an incredible singer, showcasing her vocal talents in the genres of R&B and soul. Playing a real person in a biopic requires a tremendous amount of acting talent which Hudson brought to her performance. But Hudson was picked for reasons beyond her singing and acting abilities. Here's why Jennifer Hudson was the perfect actress to play Aretha Franklin in Respect.
Hudson is an Oscar-Winning Actress
Starring in many great films that include Confirmation, The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete, and The Secret Life of Bees, Jennifer Hudson is a seasoned award-winning actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in her first film, Dreamgirls (2006). This made Hudson the youngest Black actor to win an Academy Award, at the young age of 25.
After Dreamgirls, Hudson went on to establish an impressive acting career, appearing in many films and television shows. This includes the lead role in Winnie Mandela (2011), Young Nana in Sing (2016), and Veronica Moore in the critically-acclaimed Smash. Hudson's filmography contains many musical dramas, so it comes at no surprise that she attracted casting interest for the role of Aretha Franklin.
Became Famous When She Sang an Aretha Franklin Song
The year 2004 became one that would change Jennifer Hudson's life. Jennifer Hudson was in her early twenties when she became a finalist on the third season of American Idol. Her time on the show catapulted her into a life of instant fame, kick-starting her musical career in the public spotlight. It may be fate, or it may be destiny, but the song Jennifer Hudson sang during her American Idol audition was interestingly an Aretha Franklin song. Indeed, twenty-one-year-old Hudson sang Aretha Franklin's "Share Your Love With Me." All three of the judges were instantly impressed and recognized Hudson's talent right away.
Shared Life Experiences
From a young age, both Aretha Franklin and Jennifer Hudson were considered to be musical prodigies. Franklin received over 40 Grammy Award nominations and won 18 Grammy Awards throughout her career. She won many other awards and made history as the first woman inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Hudson, like Franklin, was also the recipient of many music awards, in addition to acting. Hudson also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Beyond finding their gifts in music and performing, Aretha Franklin and Jennifer Hudson share many other life experiences. At the age of ten, Franklin experienced the tragic loss of her mother. In an article from Vanity Fair, talent agent Ruth Bowen shared;
...to have your mama die of a heart attack as a young woman... And it happened just like that—no preparation, no warning. [Her father] told me after that he was afraid Aretha wouldn’t ever recover, that she was unable to talk for weeks. She crawled into a shell and didn’t come out until many years later…Without the music I’m not sure Aretha would have ever found her way out of the shell.
Hudson also experienced a family tragedy when she lost her mother, brother, and nephew in a shooting. With Hudson being in the public spotlight, she quickly became the subject of much media attention. To deal with the tragedy, Hudson retreated from public appearances for a year before returning to perform at major events such as Super Bowl XLIII (2009). Having to face devastating loss while in the public eye, Jennifer Hudson has an understanding of grief and trauma that many people do not have.
Both Franklin and Hudson were born into a Baptist family and spoke openly about their faith. Franklin made her first recording at her pastor father's church. Throughout Franklin's career, she credited her singing voice as a gift from God. In an article from Premier Christianity, Hudson expressed that her "Christian faith couldn't be any stronger."
Personally Selected by Aretha Franklin
Many biopics cast their leads without the input of the person that the actor is portraying. That was not the case with Respect. Before her passing, the Queen of Soul herself asked Jennifer Hudson to play her in the film. Hudson's performance in the Broadway musical, The Color Purple, inspired even more confidence in Franklin that casting Hudson was the right choice.
Franklin inspired millions around the world and continues to do so. But Franklin was impressed by something she saw in Hudson. Franklin was much more than just a singer, and while being a musical legend, was still a human being with a life outside their career. Many only knew Franklin through her music, but Hudson had many life experiences that put her in a unique position to better understand her. Hudson revealed to BBC News that she never found out exactly why Franklin had chosen her;
You know what, that is the one question I failed to ask. She never specified, she just said, 'Jennifer I want you to play me', and I said, 'Yes ma'am, I will!' But I think it went beyond singing and acting. I feel as though she saw so much more that we may have experienced or paralleled in some way.
Franklin seemed to have known there weren't many actresses that could sing and act, but also pull from many of their own life experiences to accurately portray her. It seems Frankling saw a lot of herself in Hudson, and Respect proved Jennifer Hudson was the perfect actress to play her.