Adapted from the 1981 Broadway musical drama of the same name, “Dreamgirls” followed the evolution of R&B music in the 1960s and ’70s through the eyes of a girl group called Deena Jones & the Dreams. Although the story is thought to be an account of Diana Ross & the Supremes, it is purely a work of fiction… inspired by the Motown superstars.
(pictured: Anika Noni Rose, Beyonce Knowles and Jennifer Hudson)
“Deena”
The gorgeous lead singer of Deena Jones and the Dreams who is destined to be a star.
Among those vying for the role, Beyonce Knowles, Whitney Houston, Jasmine Guy and Lauryn Hill…
Beyonce Knowles wanted the role so badly that when she auditioned, she arrived in costume with choreographed dance steps.
Whitney Houston’s star turn in 1992’s “The Bodyguard” made her a spot-on choice for the role of Deena. One problem: Houston wanted to sing Deena’s songs and Effie’s song, especially the showstopping “And I Am Telling You.”
Filmmaker Joel Schumacher had eyed Lauryn Hill for the role of Deena in 1998, when he was slated to direct the film. Schumacher’s “Dreamgirls” was axed when, later that year, the musical “Why Do Fools Fall in Love?” bombed at the box office.
Long before gaining fame in the “Cosby Show” spinoff, “A Different World” (1987-93), Jasmine Guy starred on Broadway in “Grease,” “Wiz,” “Beehive” and “Chicago.” She told Movieline, “I did Diana Ross onstage in ‘Beehive,’ so…”
“Curtis”
The charming car salesman turned music mogul.
Those considered for the role: Jamie Foxx, Denzel Washington, Will Smith and Terrence Howard
Fresh off an Oscar-winning performance for “Ray,” Jamie Foxx (here with Jennifer Hudson) initially nixed the offer to play Curtis because the money offer didn’t meet his $15 million post-award expectation. “We were like, ‘What kind of money is it paying?'” Jamie confesses. “I kinda want to make some money. That’s where we were coming from at first,” he told The L.A. Times.
But… the role became his.
Denzel Washington was offered the role but swiftly turned it down because he said he couldn’t sing.
Will Smith brought a little “Dreamgirls” to “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” in 1995 when he lip-synced to Jennifer Holliday’s Broadway rendition of “And I Am Telling You.” In 2006, he didn’t get the role of Curtis… or Effie, for that matter.
Terrence Howard auditioned a cappella for the role of Curtis in “Dreamgirls,” a play that his mother tried out for 20 years earlier.
“Effie”
The voluptuous, volatile “every woman” who could belt out a song with the best of them.
Considered for the role: Jennifer Hudson, Patina Miller, Raven-Symone, Kelly Price and Fantasia Barrino
After gaining 20 pounds, getting lip injections and toiling through three callbacks, Jennifer Hudson beat out 782 other women for the role of Effie… and took home just about every award imaginable for her performance, including an Academy Award, Golden Globe, BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild and Image Award.
Jamie Foxx wanted Fantasia Barrino to play Effie before Jennifer Hudson came into the picture, but Barrino took the loss in stride. “Everyone wanted me for that role except the director. But it wasn’t for me,” Barrino told Contact Music. “I tried really hard. But I can’t even be mad. That role was for Jennifer Hudson. I feel like I was meant to win ‘American Idol.’ And I feel like J (Jennifer Hudson) was meant to play the Effie role.”
Raven-Symone auditioned for the role, even though she was starring in two TV shows at the time — lending her voice to the animated show “Kim Possible” and playing a high school student with psychic powers in the Disney series “That’s So Raven.”
During an earlier incarnation of “Dreamgirls,” then-director Joel Schumacher set his sights on Kelly Price, saying, “…with that fabulous voice, I would have had her for EFFIE… I was really excited about it.”
Although Patina Miller auditioned for the role of Effie, she later went on to make her Broadway debut in the musical “Sister Act,” playing the role made famous on screen by Whoopi Goldberg.
“CC White”
Effie’s soft-spoken, songwriter brother, a character that was inspired by Smokey Robinson.
A few of those up for the role: Keith Robinson, Usher, Omarion Grandberry and Andre 3000.
Keith Robinson went from playing the Green Powers Ranger to the live-action “Fat Albert” film to the role of CC in “Dreamgirls.” He later told RollingOut.com, “I feel honored to be a part of what I consider one the greatest black, if not all around, casts ever assembled.”
Although Usher said about playing CC, “It is not 100 percent confirmed yet, but it is something that I am entertaining,” ultimately, he couldn’t take the part because he couldn’t commit to the year it would take to film.
Lead singer of the R&B boy band B2K, Omarion Grandberry was briefly considered for the role of CC. The year “Dreamgirls” hit theaters, Grandberry’s single “Ice Box” from his second album “21” reached the top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Andre 3000 of Outkast turned down the opportunity to play CC, telling ContactMusic.com, “The director wanted to meet, and I’d really love to work with this director, but I just finished a musical, and it was a period piece. I don’t want to get typecast.”
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