Richard Pryor Jr., who made headlines this week saying he didn’t think Nick Cannon should play his father, Richard Pryor, in an upcoming Lee Daniels biopic, has changed his mind since talking to the “America’s Got Talent” host over the phone.
Pryor Jr. tells us of Cannon, who has not yet landed the part, but is in talks, “I am actually very excited about it now. He changed my mind by how he is delving into it…He did the small thing of using his left hand instead of his right hand, he picked up smoking to try and emulate my dad, he’s let his hair grow out…he’s looking into who my dad really was, looking into his childhood, who he was raised by and around, and he is interested in talking to me about who my dad was.”
Groundbreaking comic Pryor, one of the top entertainers of the 1970s and ’80s, suffered from MS and died of a heart attack in 2005.
His widow, Jennifer Lee Pryor, to whom he was married twice, including from 2001 until his death, has had a contentious relationship with Pryor Jr. She has rights to all Pryor’s Laff Records material and recordings, and we’re told has been in touch with Daniels.
Pryor Jr. has not seen the script and tells us he’s concerned about how it will treat his dad and Jennifer, who was also Pryor’s manager.
“I’m concerned about my dad in the later years, if he will be portrayed in the proper way when you have a person like Jennifer over things. She is going to portray herself as angelic when it was the opposite,” Pryor Jr. tells us. “She’s not a nice lady…My dad’s money took care of him; they didn’t even live in the same home.”
A rep from Apples & Oranges PR tells us Pryor Jr.’s lawyers at the Otto Law Group have sent a letter to Jennifer, asking to be included.
“Our request is simple,” it reads. “Mr. Pryor desires an opportunity to come to the table and be heard. He does not seek to obviate your rights. He wishes only for his input to be included in certain aspects of the biopic production.”