After months of speculation, Mary J. Blige has officially joined the cast of Rock of Ages, slated for a 2012 release. She joins Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand and Julianne Hough, and will play the role of “Justice Charlier,” owner of a strip club in 1987 Los Angeles.
The movie is a big screen adaptation of the Broadway musical of the same name, and it follows the life of a small town girl as she falls in love with a big city rock star—all set to classic ’80s rock from Poison, REO Speedwagon, Journey and tons more. It will be directed by Adam Shankman, who helmed the 2007 version of Hairspray.
This isn’t Blige’s first foray into acting; she portrayed “Tanya” in 2009’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself, and was “Mom” in Prison Song. She’s also guest started in several television shows, including Entourage, Ghost Whisperer and Strong Medicine.