Snoop Dogg’s new film ‘The UnderDoggs’ Premieres in Los Angeles

Snoop Dogg joins forces with Tika Sumpter, Mike Epps and George Lopez in this drama about a washed up football superstar. Directed by Charles Stone III (“Paid in Full”), Snoop Dogg plays Jaycen “2 J’s” Jennings, a football superstar whose inflated ego and poor sportsmanship gets him tossed off the field. Rather than putting in the work to repair his tarnished public image, Jaycen blames everything and everybody else.

It’s only when he finds himself at the mercy of the court that he finally realizes how far he’s fallen off. Being ordered to perform 300 hours of community service in his old neighborhood seems like the final blow. When he stumbles upon a fledgling youth football team in desperate need of a head coach, Jaycen decides to take on the challenge, but for selfish reasons. Along with the prospect of reconnecting with his past love, Cherise (Tika Sumpter), whose son is on the team, Jaycen hopes his good deed will propel him back into the spotlight.

“In his mind, Jaycen Jennings is the greatest motherf**ker to ever walk on grass,” Snoop Dogg says of his character. “He’s flamboyant, he’s a winner and he’s also an a**hole. He’s a ‘me’ kind of guy and when he’s forced to go back to his old neighborhood, he has to find his way again and tap into who he is, rather than who he thought he was.”

“Snoop is so talented and one of his strengths in this film was that he emotionally and intellectually understood the character,” Stone shared at the premiere held at the The Culver Theater in Los Angeles last night. “He was open to finding certain emotions and creating nuances and subtleties, while tapping into a wide range of emotion, including vulnerability. What was great for me, as a director, was his willingness to do whatever was needed to make it happen, to make Jaycen come to life.”

Rated R for pervasive language, sexual references, drug use, and some underage drinking “The UnderDoggs” starts streaming on Amazon Prime on January 26th.

Check out images from the premiere below.

Samantha Ofole-Prince is a journalist and movie critic who covers industry-specific news that includes television and film. She serves as the Entertainment Editor for Trendy Africa.