Julius Onah to Direct Basquiat Biopic 'Samo Lives' Starring Kelvin Harrison Jr.

Nigerian filmmaker Julius Onah will direct 'Samo Lives,' a biopic about Jean-Michel Basquiat, with Kelvin Harrison Jr. cast as the artist. The title references Basquiat's graffiti tag SAMO©, created with Al Diaz in late 1970s Manhattan. Onah, the first African director to helm a Basquiat film, aims to explore Basquiat's experience as a Black artist and child of the African diaspora. The film is financed by Endeavor Content and features a score by Geoff Barrow and Ben Salisbury of Portishead. Production begins in fall 2022. Onah was inspired by the 1996 Basquiat biopic directed by Julian Schnabel but felt it didn't capture the full spectrum of Basquiat's life. Basquiat's 1982 painting 'Untitled' sold for $110.5 million at Sotheby's New York in May 2017. Other Basquiat films include Tamra Davis's 2010 documentary 'The Radiant Child' and Edo Bertoglio's 'Downtown 81,' in which Basquiat played himself.