Hip-hop star Will.i.am modelled Wolverine role on cousin

From: coventrytelegraph.net
Written by: David Bentley

WHEN Will.i.am, frontman of hip-hop group Black Eyed Peas, was cast in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, there was a lot of negative response on fan forums.

But it's far from the first time a rapper has made the switch from music to movies and I thought the 34-year-old (born William James Adams) performed brilliantly in his big-screen debut.

He played the teleporting mutant John Wraith, a character from the X-Men comic books who is sometimes known by the codename Kestrel.

Will.i.am has spoken of how he enjoyed the "unbelievable" experience on the X-Men prequel and said working with director Gavin Hood was "incredible".

Speaking of the opportunity to launch his film career in such a major movie, he told Leader Newspapers in a recent interview: "It's more than spectacular. It's unbelievable, and kind of crazy, if you ask me."

He revealed a relative had provided the basis for his portrayal of John Wraith: "I modelled him on my cousin, Earl. He used to be a very, very bad, bad man. He's done some bad, bad things, but he's also a very approachable, likeable, huggable kind of guy. He has some bad friends who've done bad things, too, but he has a conscience.

[MORE]