Even more major stars are joining NBC’s live production of The Wiz. Ne-Yo, Common and Elijah Kelley will bring their talent to the already star-studded affair.
Kelley will play The Scarecrow, while Ne-Yo was cast as The Tin Man. Common is set to play The Bouncer, the gatekeeper of Emerald City.
The cast already includes David Alan Grier, Uzo Aduba, Amber Riley, Queen Latifah, Stephanie Mills and Mary J. Blige. Newcomer Shanice Williams will play Dorothy in the musical adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s Oz stories.
Kelley starred in the 2007 musical film Hairspray with Latifah and has also appeared in Red Tails, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, The Shield and Everybody Hates Chris.
Common has recently been building up his acting credentials, appearing in AMC’s Hell On Wheels, Every Secret Thing and Selma. He shared an Oscar with John Legend for the song “Glory” from Selma.
As for Ne-Yo, the R&B singer has also been taking on acting roles lately. He’s appeared in CSI: NY, Red Tails, 90210 and Stomp The Yard.
The Wiz Live! will air on Dec. 3.
image of Ne-Yo courtesy of INFphoto.com