The stars of “Straight Outta Compton” went straight to downtown Los Angeles, to the Microsoft Theater at LA Live to be exact, for the film’s premiere Monday night.
Original N.W.A members Ice Cube and Dr. Dre, DJ Yella and MC Ren attended the event to celebrate the hip-hop biopic, along with producer Tomica Woods-Wright.
Cast members including O’Shea Jackson Jr., who plays his father, Ice Cube (both pictured below), Jason Mitchell, Marlon Yates, Jr., Keith Powers, Aldis Hodge, Lisa Renee Pitts, Allen Maldonado and Corey Hawkins all walked the red carpet, while actor Tom Arnold, Snoop Dogg and Gabrielle Union also joined the party.
R. Marcus Taylor stars in the film as Marion “Suge” Knight, meanwhile Paul Giamatti plays N.W.A.’s manager, Gerald E. “Jerry” Heller.
Former One Direction member Zayn Malik was the surprise guest of the night, and his appearance at the premiere quickly trended on Twitter.
The Los Angeles Police Department rolled out additional units for the premiere and the stepped-up police presence included special events officers from the LAPD’s Central Bureau, as well as members of the department’s Gang Enforcement Detail.
Analysts say it is on track to make at or near its $29 million production budget on opening weekend, and the film has already created a buzz on social media thanks to a clever marketing campaign that allows users to change their profile picture to the famous album cover. Even Bette Midler jumped on the bandwagon with a “Straight Outta Salem” image in honor of her 1993 comedy “Hocus Pocus.”
“Straight Outta Compton” arrives in theaters on Friday, August 14.
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