Misty Copeland Would Like to See Quvenzhané Wallis, Willow Smith, Play Her in a Movie

Ballet star and San Pedro native Misty Copeland says if a movie were made about her life, Quvenzhané Wallis and Willow Smith are actresses she might like to see portray her.

“I think someone who has a lot of charisma and could really tell the story through their innocence,” the 31-year-old told San Pedro Today in a recent interview that will appear in next month’s issue. She also talks about being the new face of Under Armour Women and getting to share the stage with T-Boz and Chilli during their recent VH1 Super Bowl Blitz performance of “Waterfalls” (above).

Copeland’s extraordinary rise from humble beginnings at the San Pedro Boys and Girls Club to American Ballet Theatre, one of the world’s leading ballet companies, has all the makings of a movie.

In her new memoir, Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, Copeland shares her experience being catapulted as a ballet prodigy at the late age of 13 while she and her five siblings were living in a motel with their single mother. For the first time, she opens up about the highly publicized custody battle between her mother and ballet teachers that followed — an experience she calls “traumatic.”

After only four years of training, Copeland joined the ranks of American Ballet Theatre, where she would become the first African-American female soloist in decades. Coming back from a shin injury, she’s preparing several leading roles for ABT’s upcoming spring season.

“Hopefully they’ll continue to come and I’ll continue to grow and one day be the first African-American female principal dancer with the company,” she said. “I still have many dreams.”

Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina hits bookstores on March 4. Copeland will be coming to Southern California on March 13 to give a talk at Santa Monica’s Bergamot Station.