Erykah Badu is about to conquer the big screen. The singer hasn’t appeared on film since playing Rose Rose in 1999’s The Cider House Rules, but now she’s got one flick in post-production and has just been tapped to star in an adaptation of Thulani Davis’ novel Maker of Saints, alongside the actor Roger Guenveur Smith. Billed as a thriller set during the 2008 Democratic Convention in Denver, the film’s synopsis promises an exploration of “abusive relationships, media manipulation, and art world politics [as] experienced through the eyes and ears of a woman at her breaking point.” Now that sounds like a role that could really launch Badu’s acting career. Directed by Gary Grieg, Maker of Saints will feature artwork by the painter iona rozeal brown — and it’s rumored that Yassin Bey (the artist formerly known as Mos Def) will also be part of the cast. [via Indiewire]