Cynthia Erivo joins Snoop Dogg biopic as Tupac’s mother Afeni Shakur
The Tony, Grammy, and Emmy winner takes on a key supporting role in Universal's film about the rap icon, which is currently shooting in Southern California.
Cynthia Erivo, the Tony, Grammy, and Emmy-winning performer and three-time Oscar nominee, has joined the cast of Snoop, Universal Pictures’ biopic of music icon and entertainment mogul Snoop Dogg. Currently filming in Southern California, the movie will feature Erivo in the key role of Afeni Shakur, Tupac Shakur’s mother and a former Black Panther activist whose relationship with her son shaped the rapper’s hit “Dear Mama.”
Jonathan Daviss, known for Netflix’s Outer Banks, leads the ensemble as Snoop Dogg himself. The supporting cast includes Camron Jones as Tupac Shakur, Myles Bullock Be as Dr. Dre, Lauren London as Snoop’s late mother Beverly Tate, Algee Smith as Warren G, Tre Hale as Suge Knight, and others. Craig Brewer, who directed Hustle and Flow and Song Sung Blue, is helming the picture.
Production and Release
The screenplay was written by Joe Robert Cole, known for his work on Marvel’s Black Panther films, with Brewer providing the latest draft. Snoop Dogg is producing alongside Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer, who produced the Eminem drama 8 Mile, and Allan Mandelbaum. Death Row Pictures president Sara Ramaker is also producing. According to Variety, the film will incorporate music from Snoop Dogg’s extensive catalog and is Universal’s first project under Death Row Pictures’ overall deal with NBCUniversal. The studio has set an August 6 theatrical release date.
Erivo’s Current Work
Erivo’s casting comes as her profile continues to rise following her acclaimed performance as Elphaba in Universal’s Wicked films. That role earned her nominations for the Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild Award, Critics’ Choice Award, NAACP Image Award, BAFTA, and Academy Award. She recently executive produced and starred in a film adaptation of the Broadway play Prima Facie, which premiered at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival and is set for UK and Ireland release on November 13. She also appears in Paramount’s Children of Blood and Bone, a young-adult fantasy ensemble that opens on January 15, 2027, alongside Viola Davis, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Idris Elba, Amandla Stenberg, Damson Idris, Regina King, and Lashana Lynch.
Afeni Shakur’s Background
Born Alice Faye Williams in North Carolina in 1947, Afeni Shakur became a prominent Black Panther activist. She moved to the Bronx as an 11-year-old and later married fellow Black Panther member Lumumba Shakur. Her complex relationship with her son Tupac became the subject of his top 10 hit “Dear Mama,” according to the sources.
This article was compiled by the Glamorade editorial desk from the official announcements and reporting listed under Sources.
