Music biopics to watch while after ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’

Nine years ago, Bohemian Rhapsody was announced after Brian May spoke about the project. After photos of Mr. Robot’s Rami Malek in character as the legendary Freddie Mercury circulated the internet for months, the biopic sent fans of the indelible Queen frontman – and of campy musical biopics – into a frenetic meltdown.

It’s been several months since we witnessed Freddie Mercury’s iconic stage presence brought to the big screen by Malek. If you’re twiddling your thumbs and wondering how to pass the time since then, take a look at these musical biopics about similarly beloved male musicians that’ll make that time fly by.

Before he was the King of Wakanda, he was the King of soul. In Tate Taylor’s musical biopic, Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther) depicted musical legend James Brown and chronicled his rise from extreme poverty to become one of the most influential musicians in history.

Now that Jamie Foxx is confirmed to lead Todd McFarlane’s Spawn, the actor is yet another to play both a superhero and a musical legend. Foxx won an Academy Award for his depiction of the legendary R&B performer in Taylor Hackford’s musical biopic.

Probably one of the greatest film soundtracks around – mainly because it’s all Johnny Cash and he’s the fucking man – Walk the Line stars Joaquin Phoenix (The Master) & Reese Witherspoon (Big Little Lies) in the story of Cash’s rise to notoriety and his turbulent yet destined relationship with June Carter.

Nowadays, Ice Cube (Friday) is better known for making subpar films and Dr. Dre (Training Day) for his ludicrously expensive headphones, but back in the day they changed the game as part of N.W.A. Straight Outta Compton details the early days of these controversial figures of gangsta rap.

Another biopic of rags to riches in the hip hop scene is Notorious, giving us a fascinating look into the lives of Biggie Smalls (Jamal Woolard) and Tupac Shakur (Anthony Mackie) before their untimely deaths.