Lady Gaga plays Dionne Warwick's nemesis Cilla Black in soul singer biopic

Updated

Lady Gaga has been cast as Cilla Black in a new film based on the life of soul singer Dionne Warwick.

Former Destiny's Child singer LeToya Luckett is set to star as Warwick, with Danny Glover playing her father and Oscar-winner Olympia Dukakis appearing as Marlene Dietrich.

Bad Romance singer Lady Gaga has turned to acting over the past two years, starring in US television series American Horror Story.

The biopic will cover an early period in Warwick's career in the 1960s.

Warwick was not on good terms with British singer Black, who died last year at the age of 72.

She felt that Black's version of Anyone Who Had A Heart, which shot to number one in 1963, eclipsed her original.

US singer Warwick, who is known for hits including I Say A Little Prayer and That's What Friends Are For, appeared at the Cannes Film Festival on Friday to announce the project, which is based on her memoir My Life As I See It.

The 75-year-old told reporters she regarded Black as her nemesis "because she stole my music".

Black has previously been played by Sheridan Smith in Cilla, a TV movie about her rise to fame.

The film, produced by AMBI Pictures, will be titled Dionne.

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