Common to play Freed Slave in AMC's "Hell on Wheels"

By TV Insider
JR Staff Writer

Outside of rap, Common has had several starring roles in films. His most recent movie was Just Wright, alongside fellow rap/actor, Queen Latifah. Following his role in the movie, critics agreed Common was just as good of an actor than he is as a rapper.

While he has been doing movies for some time, Common has been open to doing television shows too. The rapper has been focused on expanding ever since he started. Cable channels have been branching out of their niches for some time.

AMC was originally a channel created in order to broadcast old movies. The formula worked until people grew tired of seeing the same movies, over and over. A few years ago, the network expanded into creating original scripted programs. The network is currently marketing their new series, "Hell on Wheels."

Common has been cast in the show, playing the role of a freed slave in the series.

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Common and Serena Williams over

For the past two years, Common has been trying to hook up with tennis star, Serena Williams. Before she started dating Common, Williams was almost done with black men. At the time, she was dating a white man. When she was asked about the relationship, she said she did not date black men. Common, at the time, was still involved with Alicia Keys.

However, Common would soon break up with Keys and he found himself interested in Serena Williams. With all of the hype surrounding Just Wright, Common has been asked millions of questions about relationships. He said it does not matter with him about the size of a woman. Instead, all that matters to him is the inside.

Despite Just Wright not being the hit it was expected to be, there is a lot of interest in Common. Hollywood feels as if they can make him into a true star. Looking to expand his career, Common is doing all he can to focus on his next film role. Common feels the best way to focus is to cut all of the distractions out of his life. While he remains in love with Serena Williams, she is a distraction and Common has decided to cut her loose for the time being.

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"Just Wright" is a Box Office Failure

For the past few months, there has been a lot of hype surrounding the latest flick starring Queen Latifah. News of Just Wright first emerged last summer and the trailers began airing in late March of this year. The film centered on Common as Scott McKnight, the top player in the NBA. In the film, real-life stars, such as Dwyane Wade and LeBron James.

The idea of Just Wright is a good one, though. Common's character is dating a beautiful woman, who has her eyes set on becoming a trophy wife. But, when Common gets injured, her plans are ruined and she brings her best friend (Queen Latifah) in to see if she can heal him. She tells her that she cannot and with that news she leaves him. However, after she leaves Latifah helps him to recover his strength.

In the process, Latifah and Common enter a relationship with each other and they fall in love. Once Common regains his strength, his ex returns to the scene. With most NBA players, they would have returned to the ex, but Common decides to stay with the woman who helped him regain the life he had lost due to injury. The good theme, the heavy promotional push, and the star-studded guest appearance made it seem as if Just Wright would end up being a hit.

Despite what it looked like, the case is far from it as Just Wright has bombed in the box office. For the most part, the film has not been much with critics either. At best, it has been met with modest reviews. Initially, it looked poised to be one of the most-popular films of 2010. However, the scenes that were previewed on television happened to be the best scenes of the film. In its first week, Just Wright landed in fourth place with $8.5 million in gross sales.

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