Remembering Prince through his movie career

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The legendary Prince died on April 21 at age 57. His huge legacy starts with music but it certainly doesn’t stop there. His songs have played in films as diverse as Risky Business, Pretty Woman, Batman, Showgirls and Happy Feet, but not everyone knows that the singer was also a big movie star in the 80s.

His first role is probably his most famous one. Purple Rain (1984) is a semi-autobiographical film in which Price gives an iconic and very emotional performance as The Kid, a talented but troubled young musician who dreams of escaping his difficult home life through music. The movie made more than $68 million at the U.S. box office and the soundtrack album contains signature hits such as the title track “Purple Rain” (which won an Academy Award for best original song score), “When Doves Cry,” “I Would Die 4 U” and “Let’s Go Crazy”.

Two years later, Prince made his directorial debut in Under the Cherry Moon, a black-and-white movie in which he plays a gigolo that swindles wealthy French women but ends up falling in love with one of them (co-star Kristin Scott Thomas). The film was pretty much a failure but its soundtrack “Parade” went platinum in the U.S. and the track “Kiss” remains one of Prince’s biggest hits.

In 1990, Prince reprised his role as The Kid in “Purple Rain” semi-sequel Graffiti Bridge, this time as a more successful performer and the owner of his own club, the Glam Slam, which he will fight to protect from his rival Morris Day.

From Saturday, April 23, till Thursday, April 29, US cinema chains AMC Theatres and Carmine Cinemas will bring the iconic Purple Rain back to theatres for a limited run to remember the music and movie star that was Prince.