YouTube will premiere Eminem-produced rap battle movie Bodied from filmmaker Joseph Kahn, who directed a controversial Power Rangers-inspired fan film in 2015.
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The unauthorized Power/Rangers starred Katee Sackhoff and James Van Der Beek and was embraced as it was criticized for its ultra-violent take on the long-running Power Rangers series, with its NSFW version eventually being removed from video hosting site Vimeo.
Part of the “Bootleg Universe” — home to unsanctioned short films The Punisher: Dirty Laundry, Venom: Truth in Journalism, and Judge Dredd: Superfiend — Power/Rangers was backed by Adi Shankar, who serves as producer on Bodied.
YouTube will give wide distribution to Bodied, which will be screened at Sundance before making its way into theaters later this year. The rap battle drama will be available for streaming on YouTube’s subscription-based YouTube Red after its theatrical run.
An official selection of the Toronto International Film Festival 2017, Bodied boasts a 95% “fresh” on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. The NSFW trailer is available above.
Bodied stars Calum Worthy as Adam Merkin, described as a “progressive graduate student who develops a passion for battle rapping while researching the scene for his thesis paper.”
Rory Uphold, Korean American rapper Dumbfoundead, Walter Perez, Charlamagne tha God, Debra Wilson and Anthony Michael Hall co-star. Legendary rapper Eminem produces.
The musician previously backed rap battle reality mini-series Road to Total Slaughter and TV movie Total Slaughter 1 under his Shady Films banner.
Kahn, who has directed music videos since 1990, has helmed videos for the music industry’s biggest stars, including Dr. Dre, the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, and Janet Jackson.
Kahn directed the music videos for Eminem’s “Without Me,” “We Made You,” “Love the Way You Lie,” and “Space Bound.”
Bodied will make its YouTube Red debut later this year.
