The emerging success of Hustle & Flow, which opened this week, is also a vindication for John Singleton who financed and produced the film. Singleton built his career on directing, starting with the groundbreaking Boyz N the Hood, the financially successful 2 Fast 2 Furious and a current project entitled Four Brothers set to open in August.
Singleton became involved with Hustle & Flow after first-time director Craig Brewer and producer Stephanie Allain spent two years searching for funding. After he too was rejected by major studios, Singleton stepped up with $3 mil and got the project done.
Though Hustle & Flow premiered successfully at Sundance and resulted in deals for additional projects as well, Singleton will be waiting for the weekend box office results to see how big a success he’s got on his hands.
Previous ProHipHop coverage includes:
Hustle & Flow To Screen at Sundance
Craig Brewer and Crunk Pictures
Profile of Hustle and Flow
Hustle & Flow Finds Success at Sundance
