If you wondered why Nick Cannon was rocking an Afro and mustache at the 2014 BET Awards, it may have something to do with an up coming role. There is speculation that the Wild’n Out star maybe playing the part of legendary comedian Richard Pryor. Though it has yet to be confirmed, Cannon has not shied away from throwing out hints via Instagram.

He recently posted a side-by-side shot of himself and Pryor with the caption: "Picking up smoking cigarettes for the next few months so forgive me if I smell like an ashtray." While in another post he expressed that he was feeling Pryor’s spirit.

Though no one has officially said that Cannon will play Pryor, the "America's Got Talent" host did reveal to TMZ  that he did not want to jinx anything. He said “[if] it’s not in production, it’s not real, so all I’m saying is I’m doing the work right now. I’m doing everything I need to do to embody it when the opportunity is right.”

The rapper/comedian continued by saying,“In my mind, [I already have the part.] I’ve definitely sat with Lee [Daniels] who’s a close friend and we’ve actually worked quite a bit on getting it right so…the movie isn’t in production yet so, again, I don’t want to be one of those dudes…I want to do it the right way. When it comes to something that’s a sensitive as a legend as Richard Pryor. There’s family. There’s friends. Production. There’s so many things that go into weighing in on who should be this person and I don’t want to be out there like ‘Oh yeah I’m doing it’ and you look up and that’s not the case.”

Last year Mike Epps revealed the he would be playing Richard Pryor in the Lee Daniels biopic, only for Marion Wayans to say months later that he would be playing the part. Guess time will soon reveal who has been chosen to portray Pryor.

[Necole Bitchie]

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