Tika Sumpter is going to be Michelle Obama, but not as First Lady. She will be a young Michelle being pursued by a young Barry Obama.
The actress is known for her roles on One Life to Live, Gossip Girl, The Game, and The Haves and the Have Nots will get to play the most powerful woman in the world. Except for Oprah.
The film will be called Southside With You, a romance that chronicles the day of the first date between a young Barack Obama and the woman who was destined to be his wife and First Lady, Michelle Robinson.
Sumpter herself most recently starred in the James Brown biopic Get On Up. She’s already in great shape, but she’ll have to work those arms extra hard to keep up with a young Michelle Robinson Obama, who would have only been 24 at the time of the film’s events. Sumpter is 34 years old now, but sure looks like she can pull that off.
The date the film is set around was the Summer of 1989 when Michelle agreed to a day out with Barack. It was not just a typical dinner-and-a-movie event, either. The man who would be President had a plan.
“It was a cool date, actually,” Michelle Obama recalls. “We spent the whole day together. He was showing me all facets of his character, so we went to the Art Institute. He showed his cultural side. Then we took a nice long walk on Michigan Avenue.”
“Kinda romantic,” her husband interjects.
“And did we go to the movie first?” she asked him.
“We didn’t have dinner,” he explained. “We actually had lunch… at the Art Institute. There was a little courtyard, with a little fountain.”
“Yeah. That was nice,” Michelle remembered.
“Yeah, very nice,” Barack Obama said.
“And then we went to see Do the Right Thing,” Michelle revealed. “It showed all the sides. He was hip, cutting-edge, cultural, sensitive … patient.”
“Take tips, gentlemen,” the President suggested.
