Lena Waithe is channeling her complicated history with Issa Rae into a buddy comedy for the two of them to star.
The actress, producer and Emmy-winning writer recently revealed she’s developing a “funny and silly” movie inspired by their “friendship breakup,” in which they plan to play versions of themselves.
“I’m working on this movie for myself and Issa Rae,” she said on Bustle’s One Nightstand podcast. “It’s a really cool idea about us being friends and having a bit of a friendship breakup, and it’s really funny and silly. I was supposed to be writing beats for her, but I ultimately just started writing the script.”
Waithe added, “She and I [were] Zooming and talking and figuring out how it could be.”
Noting that the characters are “thinly-veiled versions” of the two of them, Waithe admitted, “The characters’ names [are] Lena and Issa, I’m not even being that imaginative about it.”
The Chi creator said she and Rae “want to” play themselves in the film. “Issa’s going to be like, ‘Oh s***, well now we got to do it,’” said Waithe.
Earlier this month, Waithe told Deadline that her Showtime series The Chi will end with its upcoming eighth season, tying with Dexter, Homeland and Weeds as the network’s second-longest running series.
“As for what the future holds, I still plan on telling stories, continuing to build community, and making space for us all to be seen,” Waithe told us.
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