Spike Lee cast Harlem rapper A$AP Rocky as the lead in his upcoming film High 2 Lowest after spotting memes online that compared the Hip-Hop star to Denzel Washington’s son.
During an appearance on the 7PM in Brooklyn podcast, Lee explained the moment that sealed Rocky’s casting in the crime drama remake.
“What’s funny is that I was looking at Instagram, four or five years ago, and people were saying that A$AP looked like he’s Denzel’s son,” Lee said. “I seen those memes, and then in the film we used that. A$AP, man, he fire.”
The film, a modern reimagining of Akira Kurosawa’s High and Low, follows a music executive played by Washington who becomes the target of a ransom scheme and is forced into a high-stakes ethical decision.
Rocky stars as Yung Felon, a central figure in the plot, who is seen in the teaser trailer wearing a prison jumpsuit.
High 2 Lowest also features performances from Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera and Ice Spice. The film marks the first time Lee and Washington have worked together in nearly two decades.
Their previous collaborations include Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Malcolm X (1992), He Got Game (1998) and Inside Man (2006).
The film is scheduled to hit theaters next month.