Regina Hall Cast In 'Shaft' Sequel

There's more casting news for the upcoming Shaft film from director Tim Story. Regina Hall has been cast in the film, joining Samuel L. Jackson, Richard Roundtree, and Alexandra Shipp.

According to a report in Variety, Hall will play a former love interest of John Shaft and the mother of John Shaft Jr, who in the upcoming film is "working for the FBI, estranged from his father and determined not to be anything like him, John Shaft Jr reluctantly enlists his father's help to find out who killed his best friend Karim and bring down a drug-trafficking/money-laundering operation in NYC."

The news follows reports last month that X-Men: Apocalypse star Shipp was also joining the cast.

The film, which Deadline said earlier this year could be part of an idea to "reinvigorate the franchise with a focus on the son of the cool private eye who always finds himself navigating the gray terrain between the law and organized crime in New York City." The original, groundbreaking 1971 film starred Roundtree as John Shaft, a street-wise black detective who was hired to find the kidnapped daughter of a powerful Harlem mob boss. Jackson portrayed the character in a 2000 remake of the original film.

And while the Shaft movies don't have roots in comic books, the upcoming film has strong ties to various Marvel superhero movies. Director story previously directed 20th Century Fox's movies Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007). Shipp will be returning to the X-Men franchise as Storm in X-Men: Dark Phoenix while Jackson is well-known for portraying Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The upcoming Shaft movie is set to open on June 14, 2019.