Being forced to read a book sucks, but as always I decided to make lemon drops (shots) from the lemons my professor handed me. The book in question is
The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks and in my mind I have begun doing some casting for the movie that will inevitably be made.
For the title character, Henrietta, there is no other actress to play her other than Viola Davis. The Oscar nominated Viola becomes the character that she is playing and has the depth to pull off playing a character like Henrietta. If you don't know the story, here is a quick summary. Henrietta was a poor black woman from the south in the 1940's/1950's. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer and the doctor removed a lump from her. Rather than disposing of the lump, the doctor took the cells and reproduced them.
Henrietta's husband and cousin should be played by Jamie Foxx. "Day" Lacks is something of a womanizer and brings home quite a few STDs to his wife. Jamie, while a nice guy, has the capability to make Day seem more human and maybe even get a few people to root for him.
The main character of this story is Henrietta's daughter Deborah and only one face pops into my mind for her, and that is Viola's co-star in
The Help, Octavia Spencer. Octavia is a personal favorite, I would watch girlfriend watch paint dry, she has an expressive face and a certain vulnerability that Deborah needs.
