Universal Pictures has officially slated the upcoming Snoop Dogg biopic for a summer 2027 release, with Outer Banks star Jonathan Daviss set to portray the hip-hop legend. The studio confirmed on Tuesday (July 21) that the film, titled Snoop, will arrive in U.S. theaters on August 6, 2027.

The project will be directed by Craig Brewer, known for Hustle & Flow and Dolemite Is My Name, working from his own rewrite of an original screenplay by Joe Robert Cole. Produced by Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer, Snoop Dogg himself, and Death Row Pictures president Sara Ramaker, the film marks the first project to emerge from Death Row Pictures’ overall deal with NBCUniversal Entertainment. Universal Pictures is billing the movie as the “definitive biopic of the artist, mogul and icon of gangsta rap”.

The biopic explores Snoop’s rise from humble beginnings in Long Beach, California, to the pinnacle of the rap industry. His path to stardom began when he joined Death Row Records in the 1990s, collaborating with rap legends like Dr. Dre and Tupac Shakur. He released his landmark debut album, Doggystyle, in November 1993, and has since become one of the best-selling rap artists of all time.

The film will feature some of Snoop’s most popular songs from his extensive catalogue, including “Drop It Like It’s Hot,” “Gin and Juice,” “What’s My Name,” and “Nuthin’ but a ‘G’ Thang”. It is currently unclear whether the movie will take a wide-ranging look at Snoop’s career or focus on a specific chapter of his life.

Snoop Dogg first revealed plans for the biopic while speaking at CinemaCon in April, where he confirmed that production would begin this summer. Addressing the Las Vegas audience, the rapper said: “After my brothers got to tell their story with Straight Outta Compton, now it’s my turn”. He also praised his director, adding: “My director, Craig Brewer, he just showed us how hard it is out here for a pimp from Hustle & Flow. And then last year, he got us all singing ‘Sweet Caroline’” – a reference to Brewer’s Neil Diamond film Song Sung Blue.

When the project was first announced in 2022, shortly after Snoop acquired Death Row Records, Donna Langley, now chairman of NBCUniversal Entertainment & Studios, expressed her enthusiasm. “Snoop Dogg’s life and legacy make him one of the most exciting and influential icons in popular culture,” Langley said. “We met with Snoop shortly after he acquired Death Row Records and had the opportunity to hear his story in his own words. We are humbled to be able to create the lasting document of this singular artist”.

Snoop himself said in a statement at the time that he had waited for the right partners: “I waited a long time to put this project together because I wanted to choose the right director, the perfect writer, and the greatest movie company I could partner with that could understand the legacy that I’m trying to portray on screen, and the memory I’m trying to leave behind. It was the perfect marriage. It was holy matrimony, not holy macaroni”.

Universal has a strong track record with music biopics, having previously released the Oscar-nominated N.W.A. film Straight Outta Compton, which grossed more than $200 million worldwide. The studio also produced the Eminem drama 8 Mile in 2002.