Mark Isham (Crash, Once Upon a Time, A River Runs Through It, The Accountant, Miracle) has been hired to score the upcoming biographical drama The United States vs. Billie Holiday. The film is directed by Lee Daniels (Precious, The Butler, Shadowboxer) and stars Andra Day, Trevante Rhodes, Garrett Hedlund, Natasha Lyonne, Evan Ross, Dana Gourrier, Erik LaRay Harvey and Melvin Gregg. The movie is inspired by by Johann Hari’s 2015 New York Time bestseller Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs and centers on jazz singer Billie Holiday during her career as she is targeted by the Federal Department of Narcotics with an undercover sting operation. Suzan-Lori Parks (Genius: Aretha, Girl 6) wrote the screenplay. Daniels is also producing the project with Jordan Fudge (The 40-Year Old Version), Pamela Oas Williams (Star) and Tucker Tooley (Den of Thieves, Hunter Killer). Christopher Gunning was originally attached to score the film. The United States vs. Billie Holiday is currently in post-production and is expected to premiere later this year.
Isham has also recently co-scored Hulu’s Little Fires Everywhere, which just premiered last month, as well as the fifth episode of the Apple TV+ reboot of Amazing Stories, which will premiere this coming Friday. The composer’s upcoming feature projects include the sci-fi comedy sequel Bill & Ted Face the Music, Mark Williams’ Honest Thief and John Ridley’s Needle in Timestack.
