Colman Domingo to direct and star in Nat King Cole musical biopic

Fresh off his Best Actor Academy Award nomination for Rustin, Colman Domingo has been busy filling up his slate, with Variety reporting that his next project will see him starring as legendary singer Nat King Cole.

But wait, there’s more! In addition to starring as Nat King Cole, Colmon Domingo will also make his feature directorial debut on the musical biopic project. “I’ve been working on it quietly for a few years,” Domingo told Variety. “It’s something I’m looking forward to putting together with some great partners.” The actor previously co-wrote Lights Out: Nat ‘King’ Cole with Patricia McGregor, a play that premiered at the Geffen Playhouse in 2019.

After getting his start as a Jazz pianist in the 1930s, Cole achieved mainstream success with singles such as Unforgettable, Smile, L-O-V-E, Embraceable You, and many more. He faced a lot of racial discrimination throughout his career, including one particular incident in which a group of men attacked him on stage, with the apparent motive of kidnapping him.

Domingo has been receiving much-deserved acclaim for his starring role in Rustin, in which he plays Bayard Rustin, the forgotten architect of the 1963 Civil Rights March on Washington. “Rustin challenged authority and never apologized for who he was, but was forgotten despite making history,” reads the official synopsis. “Rustin spotlights the man who, alongside Martin Luther King Jr., dared to imagine a different world and inspired a movement.” You can check out a review from our own Chris Bumbray right here.

Nat King Cole isn’t the only real-life figure Colman Domingo has on his slate; it was announced yesterday that the actor would be playing Michael Jackson’s father in the upcoming biopic directed by Antoine Fuqua. “I’m excited to be a part of a film that explores both the complicated soul of the legendary Michael Jackson as well as his impact on music and culture as a global icon,” Domingo said. “Not only am I fortunate to have a rich, complex and flawed character to portray in Joe Jackson, but I also have a front row seat for Jaafar’s incredible transformation. After seeing him in rehearsal, my mind was blown. There is something divine about the way that Jaafar is channeling his late uncle. His talent and embodiment of Michael’s essence is simply on another level.“