Key Points
Monae to star in white-collar crime memoir adaptation
Story highlights systemic racism in financial crime investigations
Universal Pictures backs Wondaland Pictures project
Tanya Smith's memoir reveals complex banking system manipulation
Monae will also produce the project about an unsuspecting woman who hatches a clever white-collar scheme that manipulates the U.S. banking system out of millions through Wondaland Pictures' first-look deal with Universal, with Smith to executive produce, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"When the FBI finally cornered Smith, they refused to believe a black woman could be the architect of sophisticated financial crimes, as they smugly asserted, "These are not the kind of crimes black people are smart enough to commit," according to a synopsis from the producers," as per the outlet.
For her financial wrongdoing, as detailed in her memoir, Smith has completed a harsh prison sentence for her financial wrongdoing as per her memoir. But, now she is an advocate for prison reform, racial justice and economic equality, as per The Hollywood Reporter.
Monae was part of Moonlight, Hidden Figures, Antebellum, Harriet, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, and the Amazon series Homecoming. The Grammy-nominated singer/rapper, songwriter, arranger and producer has album credits like The ArchAndroid (2010), The Electric Lady (2013), Dirty Computer (2018) and The Age of Pleasure (2023).
Janelle Monae has received ten Grammy Award nominations and is the recipient of a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Children's and Family Emmy Award. Monae has also been honoured with the ASCAP Vanguard Award, as well as the Rising Star Award (2015) and the Trailblazer of the Year Award (2018) from Billboard Women in Music.
