Watch Gravy Play Biggie in Tupacs Dead Scene From Notorious

Wondering how portly Brooklyn MC Jamal Gravy Woolard looks attempting to portray the most famous portly Brooklyn MC of all time, the Notorious B.I.G.? Thereve been a bunch of clips from the upcoming biopic Notorious floating around the Web, but heres a particularly high-voltage one: its Biggie breaking the news of Tupac Shakurs death to his own mom, Voletta Wallace. Were a little meh so far, but what do you think? Is it like Eminem in 8 Mile, 50 Cent in Get Rich or Die Tryin or Method Man in How High?

When Rolling Stone spoke to Woolard about the film which was named Hot Biopic on our annual Hot List he detailed the intense boot-camp-like training he received for the film at Julliard, where he dove into method-acting techniques and had cotton balls stuffed in his mouth to learn better diction. In Notorious, director George Tillman Jr. gives viewers a crash course on Christopher Wallace. The movie begins with the Brooklyn MCs youth and quickly leads to his eventual life as Kwest, the hustler who also raps, who then becomes full-time MC, the Notorious B.I.G. Newcomer Woolard stars alongside Angela Bassett (Whats Love Got To Do With It), Derek Luke (Antwone Fisher) and Anthony Mackie (She Hate Me).

For more on the rappers still-unsolved murder (he was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in L.A. on March 9, 1997), check out these investigative reports:

The Unsolved Mystery of the Notorious B.I.G
The Murder of the Notorious B.I.G.