Courtesy of TV One
It’s been over 35 years since Prince‘s Oscar-winning film Purple Rain was first released in theaters. Now, close to five years after the music legend’s passing, one of the film’s central stars, Morris Day, tells ABC Audio that he’s ready to see the musical drama revived — but not necessarily on the screen.
“I don’t think I’ve heard that. Purple Rain the stage production. The theater production. I like that,” says Day, who starred as Prince’s rival Morris in the 1984 film.
“You kind of got me stuck on that. I think it’s great,” he continues. “I think if you have something that’s withstood the test of time, then I think it’s worth people seeing. I don’t think you can see too much of it.”
Purple Rain, which won an Oscar for Best Original Song Score, was the acting debut of Prince, who played The Kid, a character based partly on himself. While the film was developed to highlight Prince’s talents, it also provided a highly successful soundtrack album of the same name, which led to multiple chart-topping singles, including “When Doves Cry” and “Let’s Go Crazy.”
Day says if a stage production of the film does come together, he’d definitely be on board.
“I’m not mad at it. I think if you feel like it’s appropriate and it’ll work, then go for it,” he says.
However, in the meanwhile, the funk musician and The Time frontman says he has “a lot of things… going on” with his own company, Morris Day Entertainment.
“We were in talks with turning [my memoir On Time: A Princely Life in Funk] into a film with AMC right now,” Day reveals. “And we got a lot of things on the fire right now.”
“So stay tuned,” he teases.
By Candice Williams
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