November 18, 2024
DAMON HIGGINS/USA TODAY NETWORK
Boyz II Men, the Philly R&B group that rose to fame in the 1990s, are the focus of a movie and a documentary series being created by Compelling Pictures. Above, Shawn Stockman, Nathan Morris and Wanya Morris perform in West Palm Beach in 2022.
A movie and a documentary series that each tell the story of Boyz II Men reportedly are in the works.
Compelling Pictures and Primary Wave are creating a biopic on the R&B group, whose classic lineup included Nathan Morris, Shawn Stockman, Michael McCary and Wanya Morris, Variety reported. Compelling Pictures also is developing a "long-form documentary project" about Boyz II Men's rise during the 1990s and their continued success.
Boyz II Men, which formed in Philadelphia in the mid-80s, has won four Grammy Awards and sold more than 60 million albums. They rose to fame in 1991 with their album "Cooleyhighharmony" and have had five No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including "End of the Road," "On Bended Knee" and "I'll Make Love To You." Five other hits have reached the top 10, including "Motownphilly" and "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday."
Boyz II Men have been a trio since 2003, when McCary left the group due to multiple sclerosis. They are playing the American Music Theatre in Lancaster on Feb. 12.
Nathan Morris, Wanya Morris and Stockman are serving as executive producers on the biopic.
“We've been waiting to find the right partners who understand our story and are willing to tell it all," Nathan Morris told Variety.
Denis O'Sullivan, known for the Freddie Mercury biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody," and Jeff Kalligheri of "Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody," will produce the movie. Both are in early talks with writers and directors and plan to fast-track the film. They'll have access to Boyz II Men's discography to help tell the story.
"We're excited to show the brotherhood and (camaraderie), as well as the challenges and strife, humor and heartbreak, that has accompanied the unparalleled success that Nate, Shawn, Wanya, and Mike have worked so hard to achieve," O'Sullivan and Kalligheri told Variety. "And we think the global audience will want to sing along to a sexy, funny, aspirational, uplifting celebration of friendships and artistic partnerships that have stood the test of time."
In 2021, it was reported that Amazon Studios was working on a film based on the group's work, but there hasn't been an update on that project in the time since.
