![May be an image of 11 people and text](https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.30808-6/p843x403/273310183_10158286068536493_1567526995447882808_n.jpg?_nc_cat=1&ccb=1-5&_nc_sid=5cd70e&_nc_ohc=HfKFNLPRs_cAX9DrQVN&_nc_ht=scontent-atl3-1.xx&oh=00_AT-hHO-S6l2cX0FmfxqMZx99FfMB5dtg2cLEi415U12COg&oe=6201E649)
Singer Fantasia Taylor and actress Danielle Brooks are set to star in Warner Bros.’ big-screen adaptation of the award-winning musical “The Color Purple.”News that Taylor and Brooks will play leads Celie and Sofia, respectively, was announced Thursday during ABC’s “Soul of a Nation: Screen Queens Rising” special. Warner Bros., like CNN, is a division of WarnerMedia.
Both actresses reprise their roles from the stage production. While “American Idol” season 3 winner Taylor made her Broadway debut as Celie in the original production back in 2007, Brooks’ onstage performance as Sofia in the show’s revival earned her a 2016 Tony award nomination
On Thursday night, Taylor, 37, shared a clip of the phone call confirming she had been cast in the leading role with her 4.6 million Instagram followers
As I sit tonight and reflect on the journey my life has taken I believe I now understand what Redemption truly feels like. The last time I stepped into this character, the similarities between what I portrayed on stage and what I experienced in my own reality were too close for comfort. I’ve learned since then that my pain was only an introduction to a greater purpose of meaning and assignment,” the caption read. y.
![Fantasia Taylor and Danielle Brooks will play characters previously portrayed by Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey, respectively.](https://cdn.cnn.com/cnnnext/dam/assets/220204094611-taylor-brooks-split-exlarge-169.jpg)