Fantasia Barrino and Danielle Brooks Join THE COLOR PURPLE Musical Film Adaptation as Celie and Sofia

Fantasia Barrino and Danielle Brooks have joined the upcoming film adaptation of The Color Purple musical as Celie and Sofia, respectively.

The news was announced on ABC's "Soul of a Nation" special "Screen Queens Rising." "ABC News Live Prime" anchor Linsey Davis was first to interview the actresses about the casting news.

Both actresses are no stranger to the roles. Barrino played Celie in the original production on Broadway, replacing Kenita R. Miller during the spring of 2007. Brooks recently played Sofia in the Tony Award-winning revival, earning a Tony nomination for Best Performance By An Actress In A Featured Role In A Musical.

It was previously announced that Taraji P. Henson will play Shug Avery in the new film adaption. Henson will join the previously announced Corey Hawkins as Harpo and H.E.R. as Squeak. It was also reported that H.E.R. was working with the film's creative team to write a new song for the film.

Blitz Bazawule will direct the movie with a script by Marcus Gardley. It will be released in 2023.

The story depicts the lives of African American families and relationships in early twentieth-century Georgia.

The musical, featuring jazz, ragtime, gospel, blues and African rhythms, has a book by Marsha Norman with music by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray. It first premiered on Broadway in 2005, starring LaChanze as Celie, who won Best Actress in a Leading Role and received 12 nominations; a 2016 revival garnered Tony wins for leading actress Cynthia Erivo and for Best Revival of a Musical.

The Color Purple is based on the 1982 novel of the same name by Alice Walker. It was originally adapted into a non-musical film in 1985, starring Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey, Danny Glover, and more.