16 January, 2026, 12:32 pm Central - 31°C Rain

Jennifer Hudson earns praise for Aretha Franklin biopic

Jennifer Hudson earns praise for Aretha Franklin biopic

By Naveel Krishant
10/08/2021
[Image: BBC]

Jennifer Hudson's performance in the Aretha Franklin biopic Respect has been praised by critics, but the film as a whole has received mixed reviews.

Before her death in 2018, Franklin personally requested that the Oscar-winning Hudson portray her in the film about her life.

The film also stars Forest Whitaker as Franklin's father and Mary J Blige as Dinah Washington.

Aretha Franklin was one of the biggest stars of pop, soul, gospel and R&B, who scored more than 100 hit singles on the US Billboard charts - from Chain of Fools and Respect to Think and (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman.

Her extraordinary success was matched by an equally dramatic personal life, in which she survived abusive relationships and worked with civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King.

[Source: BBC]

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