Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave director, to make Tupac Shakur film

Steve McQueen (left) will make the documentary with the company set up by Shakur's mother

Academy Award-winning film-maker Steve McQueen is to direct a documentary about the life of Tupac Shakur.

McQueen, who won an Oscar for 12 Years a Slave, has been signed up to make the film by the late hip-hop star's family.

Shakur, who was murdered in 1996, had only a five-year career but has sold more than 75 million records and acquired a hero status.

"I am extremely moved and excited to be exploring the life and times of this legendary artist," McQueen said.

"I attended NYU film school in 1993 and can remember the unfolding hip-hop world and mine overlapping with Tupac's through a mutual friend in a small way," McQueen added.

"Few, if any shined brighter than Tupac Shakur. I look forward to working closely with his family to tell the unvarnished story of this talented man."

Shakur's aunt, Gloria Cox, will oversee the film as executive producer and the film is being made with the support of Amaru Entertainment, set up by the rapper's mother to release her son's posthumous projects.

The cast of 12 Years a Slave included Chiwetel Ejiofor and Lupita Nyong'o

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Shakur died in September 1996 in Las Vegas after being shot four times by an unidentified assailant.

He acquired worldwide fame and last month became the first solo hip-hop artist to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

This year two more films are due to be released about him, including the dramas All Eyez On Me and LAbyrinth with Johnny Depp.

British director McQueen's credits also include Hunger and Shame, and in 2014 he became the first black film-maker to win an Oscar for best picture, for 12 Years a Slave. He is also a Turner Prize-winning video artist.

He is currently also working on a big screen adaptation of British TV thriller Widows starring Viola Davis, Liam Neeson, Andre Holland, Daniel Kaluuya, Michelle Rodriguez and Robert Duvall.

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