Lenny Kravitz to play Marvin Gaye in biopic

Category: Entertainment Published on Thursday, 29 November 2012 09:41 Written by Courier Newsroom Hits: 564

(CNN)—Lenny Kravitz isn't playing around with his acting career.

The 48-year-old rocker has signed on to portray soul/R&B legend Marvin Gaye in an upcoming biopic, his rep has confirmed to CNN.

The project will be directed by Julien Temple ("The Filth and the Fury"; "Bullet"), and is slated to begin filming in 2013.

Musician Lenny Kravitz walks the red carpet at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. (CNN Photo/Tim Hart)

According to The London Evening Standard, Temple's biopic will chronicle Gaye's later years in the early 1980s when he was in Europe battling addiction and refreshing his career.

This will be Kravitz's first lead role, although he's been steadily snapping up memorable supporting roles over the past few years, including a gig in 2009's "Precious" and 2012's "The Hunger Games."

In addition to the Marvin Gaye biopic, Kravitz will again appear as the stylist Cinna in "The Hunger Games: Catching Fire" next November, and in Lee Daniels' "The Butler," which is also slated to arrive next year.