Chappelle Goes Gondry

Excellent news: Dave Chappelle will be working on a film with director Michel Gondry! Variety reports that the film is inspired by Wattstax, a documentary about a musical event hosted by Richard Pryor, and will combine music and comedy. And since Chappelle will be starring (as well as producing), Gothamist imagines he'll be the event's emcee, and perhaps have other roles as performers. The idea of Dave Chappelle and Michel Gondry, who directed The Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind, Human Nature, and many groundbreaking videos, is also mindblowing. Kudos to your agents and managers, dudes. And, even better, filming begins next month in Brooklyn.

Also: Dave Chapelle will not be doing the Rick James biopic; he told Terry Gross in a great NPR interview that he spoke to Rick before his death and Rick's concern was that his children might not understand the film, even if it was a comedy. But Rick James's shadow still looms, as "I'm Rick James, bitch!" gets tossed out a lot at his shows. His Showtime special, For What It's Worth, aired last Saturday and is in repeats.

Did you know about Dave Chappelle's Block Party on September 18? (Gothamist Arts did!) To our great relief, Chappelle Show will be back for more seasons. We enjoyed the Michel Gondry video, Hardest Button to Button. Gothamist on Dave Chappelle.