Snoop Dogg surprised movie theater owners Wednesday at the CinemaCon convention in Las Vegas, when he announced details about an upcoming biopic centering on his life.
The West Coast rap legend confirmed Jonathan Daviss–who also goes by “J.D.”– will portray him in the upcoming Universal Pictures film.
Urban Hollywood 411 contributor and Philadelphia Tribune critic Kathia Woods was in the audience during the splashy announcement. She said theater owners, critics, and film writers “screamed” when Snoop walked on stage during a presentation by Universal.
The Long Beach rapper, born Calvin Broadus Jr., was joined by Daviss and kicked off the studio’s presentation with a performance of “Drop It Like It’s Hot” and “Gin and Juice.”
Craig Brewer (Hustle & Flow and Black Snake Moan) is set to direct the authorized film. Snoop and Oscar winner Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind) are producing. Grazer is also an executive producer on Keke Palmer’s The ‘Burbs, with previous credits on Swagger and Empire.
Daviss grew up in Texas, and currently stars in the Netflix teen mystery drama series Outer Banks. According to the streamer’s Tudum blog, the show’s fifth and final season wrapped filming in December 2025.
Snoop Dogg was previously portrayed by LaKeith Stanfield in the 2015 N.W.A biopic, Straight Outta Compton.
A joint Universal and Death Row Pictures production, the new film is expected to arrive in theaters in 2027.
Snoop Dogg and Daviss are shown in the image above at the 2025 BET Awards, courtesy of Getty Images for BET.
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