Shamier Anderson and Westworld actor Louis Herthum – “hmm, doesn’t look like anything to me” – have closed deals to join LAbyrinth, the gestating police thriller set to recount the infamous feud between Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G and, more specifically, the ensuing legal battle following their untimely deaths circa 1996.
Deadline has the scoop, confirming that Herthum has landed the role of an upstanding city attorney, while on the other side of the moral spectrum we understand Anderson is set to play corrupt LAPD officer David “D. Mack” Mack, an alleged accomplice in the murder of Christopher Wallace (AKA Biggie Smalls). Helmed by Lincoln Lawyer‘s Brad Furman, Anderson and Herthum will star opposite Johnny Depp and Rogue One‘s Forest Whitaker, and apparently, the cameras are already rolling in LA.
As arguably one of the most iconic – and indeed public – rivalries in modern music history, the story of Tupac and Biggie’s fallout has been well documented, but LAbyrinth presents a new wrinkle to the fold, choosing to explore not the murders themselves, but the painstaking investigation that followed. Depp and Whitaker will anchor that narrative as Russell Poole, a disgraced LAPD detective, and budding journalist Jack Johnson, respectively.
Here’s the elevator pitch, which sheds some light on their uneasy dynamic: “Disgraced LAPD detective Russell Poole (Depp), is unable to solve his biggest case – the murders of the two music icons. After two decades, the case remains open. Jack Jackson, a reporter desperate to save his reputation and career, is determined to find out why. He tracks down Poole, and the two enter into an uneasy partnership to finally put this case to rest. Relentless in their hunt for the truth, the two men threaten to crack the foundation of the LAPD while fighting for their own redemption.”
LAbyrinth is currently lensing in Los Angeles ahead of an expected release late next year. Tell us, what are your early impressions of the new recruits? Sound off down below and give us your thoughts!