They were very numerous to pass the casting, but one of them stood out.
Marisa Abela would indeed have amazed the film crew.
The 26-year-old British actress has been cast as Amy Winehouse in
Back to Black , a biopic about the musician named after her second album,
Deadline
revealed on
January 13, 2023. the same day the very first photo of the shoot, provided by Studio Canal.
The actress appears there in close-up, bare shoulders and apparent tattoos – and of course wearing the singer's emblematic sauerkraut bun.
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"I love you, Amy"
Marisa Abela as Amy Winehouse in the new biopic in her honor,
Back to Black
, directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson.
Focus Features/Studio Canal
Marisa Abela confirmed her participation in the feature film by posting a photo carousel on Instagram on January 14.
The four shots are accompanied by the caption: “For London.
It's for London.
Because Camden Town is not burning.
I love you, Amy,” she wrote, ending the word with a red heart.
The young actress was revealed in 2020 in
Industry
, a British series following young financial sharks, where she plays the role of an heiress named Yasmin.
Same DNA
British director Sam Taylor-Johnson (
Nowhere boy
,
Fifty Shades of Gray
) has opened up about her relationship with the soul singer.
“My bond with Amy started when I left university and was hanging out in London's very creative borough of Camden.
I found a job at the legendary Koko Club, and I can still smell the scent of every market stall, every vintage shop and every street... A few years later, Amy wrote songs of startling honesty while living in Camden.
Like for me, it has become part of his DNA.
A genius
Sam Taylor-Johnson was a fan of the late singer: "I first saw her perform at a talent show at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in Soho and it immediately occurred to me that she was didn't just have 'talent'... He was a genius.
As a filmmaker, you can't really ask for more."
The actor's wife Aaron Taylor-Johnson continued, "I feel excited and humbled to have the opportunity to bring Amy's unique and tragic story to film, along with the most important part of her legacy - his music.
I am fully aware of the responsibility, with my collaborator at the
writing - Matt Greenhalgh - I will create a film that we will all love and cherish forever.
Just like we love Amy”.
Family support
This new film received the blessing of the family of the passionate singer of jazz.
Mitch and Janis Winehouse, her parents, said: "We are delighted that Studiocanal, Focus Features and Monumental are making this film celebrating the extraordinary musical heritage of our daughter Amy and showcasing her talent as it deserves."
"The Club of 27"
Amy Winehouse, who passed away on July 23, 2011, joined other music greats who died at the age of 27, including Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and others - incorporating what the nicknamed "the club of 27".
Although she is known for her drug addiction, her bulimia, her alcoholism or her depressions,
Back to Black
, the new biopic, has decided to focus on her musical talent.
Or more accurately, as
Deadline
reports , her "genius, creativity and honesty that infused everything she did."
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After
Amy
,
Back to Black
The singer with the iconic line of
eyeliner
notably stood out with her album
Back to Black
, released in 2006, and for which she won five Grammy Awards.
The album with multiple hits (
Rehab, You Know I'm No Good, Back to Black
,...) remains today one of the best-selling in the history of music, with sales estimated at 20 million copies.
Amy Winehouse had already been the subject of a successful documentary simply titled
Amy
(2015).
The feature film directed by Asif Kapadia had won the Oscar for best documentary film, and had been rewarded with six Grammy Awards.
The biopic, whose filming began today, January 16, 2023, in the British capital therefore faces a major challenge.
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