Barack Obama is saying “yes, you can” to Drake’s ambition of playing the former president in a biopic.
In a new interview with Complex’s Speedy Morman, Obama gave the rapper his official “stamp of approval” should the opportunity arise.
“I will say this, Drake seems to be able to do anything he wants,” Obama told Morman. “I mean, that is a talented, talented brother. So if the time comes and he’s ready…”
Obama added that not only does he give Drake his blessing to portray him – but his daughters would, too.
“Drake has, more importantly, I think, my household’s stamp of approval. I suspect Malia and Sasha would be just fine with it,” Obama said.
Drake — who started his career acting in “Degrassi: The Next Generation” and “Charlie Bartlett” — first expressed interest in playing Obama in 2010 during an interview with Paper.
“I hope somebody makes a movie about Obama’s life soon because I could play him. I watch all the addresses. Anytime I see him on TV, I don’t change the channel, I definitely pay attention and listen to the inflections of his voice,” Drake said. “If you ask anyone who knows me, I’m pretty good at impressions. Slowly but surely, I’m not in the study mode because nobody’s called me about anything, but I just pay attention so when the day comes I’m not scrambling to learn how to speak like him.”
Though Obama has been portrayed several times in television and film already — by Kingsley Ben-Adir on “The Comey Rule,” Devon Terrell in “Barry” and and Parker Sawyers in “Southside With You” — a full biopic of his career in politics has yet to be made. But, with the recent release of Obama’s memoir, “A Promised Land,” there is now a solid base for a potential screenplay.
