Actor Paul Giamatti has signed up to play record label boss Jerry Heller in Universal's next 'Straight Outta Compton'.
The 47-year-old actor will star as the Ruthless Records co-founder who went onto manage rap group NWA, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Original members Ice Cube and Dr Dre serve as producers on the biopic, which will be directed by 'Law Abiding Citizen' filmmaker F Gary Gray.
Set in the mid-1980s, the film will follow the rise and fall of the Compton, California rap group. Heller originally signed the group, but was blamed for playing a role in the break-up that followed Dre and Ice Cube's exit.
Oscar-nominated Giamatti's recent credits include '12 Years A Slave', 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2' and 'Downton Abbey'.
'Straight Outta Compton' is scheduled for release on August 14, 2015 in the US.
