Kim Kardashian’s quest to free former convict Alice Marie Johnson from life imprisonment is being turned into a Hollywood movie.
Johnson, now a justice campaigner, revealed exclusively to DailyMailTV that Hollywood studios have tabled biopic offers, which she plans to develop.
The 66-year-old, who Kardashian convinced former President Donald Trump to release from prison in 2018, is intent on co-writing the script.
Johnson revealed the news Saturday at the NFL Alumni Association Super Bowl party in Hollywood.
Award-winning actresses Queen Latifah, Angela Bassett, and Regina King are the justice reform advocate’s preferred choices to play her in the movie.
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Alice Marie Johnson’s life sentence was commuted in 2018 after Kim Kardashian lobbied for her release
Johnson, who served 21 years for a nonviolent drug offense, had her sentence commuted by President Donald Trump in 2018 before being granted a full pardon in 2020. They are pictured together at the 2019 Prison Reform Summit at the White House
Speaking to DailyMailTV at the NFL Alumni Association Super Bowl party in Hollywood Saturday, Johnson revealed her life story is being turned into a Hollywood movie
While many in Hollywood have attacked President Trump before and after his White House term, she promised to present him sympathetically, saying she is ‘forever grateful’ for his release order four years ago and later full pardon.
Johnson made headlines when Kardashian visited the White House in 2018 and personally pleaded her case with Trump, convincing him that a life sentence for a first-time nonviolent drug offense was wrong.
Speaking on camera about Hollywood’s plans to turn her life story into a film, Johnson said: ‘I have already had some offers.
‘I have looked at several actresses that I would love to portray me.
‘I love Queen Latifah. I think she would be a strong character, one that would show her survival instincts.
‘I absolutely love Angela Bassett. The reason I love her is because I love to dance and she is a great actress and dancer. There are some others on my list: I love Regina King.
‘I want someone that can bring the passion and all facets of my life to the big screen, not just being a prisoner who survived and came out, but to really humanize my story.
‘And also show the ups and downs, because I really could have given up, but I did not.
Johnson told DailyMailTV she has already ‘had some offers’ and is intent on writing the script about her life
As for the potential actresses that could play her, Johnson named Queen Latifah as someone who could play a strong character and ‘would show her survival instincts’
Award-winning stars Regina King and Angela Bassett were also among those on Johnson’s list, she revealed
‘I am a fighter. So I need someone who has that fighting spirit.’
Johnson added she wants to be hands-on with the movie, having produced plays performed by fellow inmates during her time in prison.
‘I would like to help with the script writing, because I am passionate about that.
‘I do not want something that is just a feel good story.
‘I hope though my story is a story of hope, survival and not just turning lemons into lemonade. ‘In life we will have things that will knock us down, but it is how we respond to those things that shape the individuals.
‘I could have taken a different road and allowed prison to get inside of me. I didn’t allow myself to be conformed to the place I was located.’
Said she wanted the movie to be grounded rather than becoming an glamorous upbeat Hollywood biopic.
‘I want them to see that I am a regular person that made a mistake. And with that first ever mistake I was given life plus 25 years without the possibility of parole. They need to see this justice system is broken. I am not unique.
‘This gives me an opportunity to make criminal justice reform front and center.’
Kim Kardashian’s (left) first trip to the Trump White House came in May 2018, with President Trump commuting Johnson’s sentence days later
Kardashian visited President Trump at the White House once again in 2020 to discuss criminal justice reform with newly-freed prisoners
Johnson served almost 22 years in federal prison. After her release in 2018 following a campaign by Kardashian, she began campaigning to get pardons for others like her, serving long sentences for relatively minor, nonviolent and first offenses.
Her non-profit, Taking Action for Good (TAG), has advocated for over 100 clemency and pardon applicants, and has helped 46 people receive second chances.
Her story was credited with prompting the passage of the First Step Act in 2018, a law that rewards good behavior in prison with shortened sentences and job training.
‘It means a lot to me to tell other’s stories,’ she said. ‘It is not about the things I did. It is about the people I represent.’
The activist said that her charity work would remain a priority over her Hollywood offers – though she now considers A-lister Kardashian a friend.
‘When I met Kim Kardashian I did not even know who she was. I did not have any preconceived ideas about her. I met her as a friend, who was advocating for me. We have a very close bond now.
‘I have been actually so busy going from state to state. Just seeing the fruit of my labor, bringing communities together and restoring families. It is hard but very rewarding work.’
She said she believes Kim, who is training to be a lawyer, will likely follow her father Robert Kardashian into criminal defense.
Johnson has promised to portray President Trump sympathetically, saying she is ‘forever grateful’ for his release order four years ago and later full pardon
‘I think Kim was born with that in her, but didn’t realize she had it in her until my case came along. My case changed her life and she changed my life too. Because she saw the results of fighting. She said ‘If I can save someone’s life, I’ll do anything.’
‘I told Kim that she was born with this DNA in her, and it just took my case for her to realize what was in her.’
Johnson was convicted in 1996 of conspiracy to possess cocaine and attempted possession of cocaine.
She had gotten addicted to gambling and was deep in debt. When Tennessee gang members asked her to pick up burner phones for them in return for cash, she agreed – a decision she now deeply regrets.
But when prosecutors cracked down on the gang’s drug trafficking scheme, Johnson said she was erroneously cast as a ‘queenpin’ and given a draconian sentence despite her previous clean slate.
‘I was an ordinary individual, working and taking care of my children. And crises happened,’ she said. ‘Sometimes in crisis situations we need to do better.’
Two years after her early release, Johnson was invited to the White House in 2020 where Trump surprised her with a presidential pardon.
The activist, who previously spoke to DailyMailTV in October (pictured) said that her charity work would remain a priority over her Hollywood offers
She said he appeared a very different man off-camera to the one she had seen on TV.
‘Even though there have been many things written about [Trump] on a personal level I had an opportunity to have a different type of relationship,’ she said.
‘He listened to me. There were no cameras rolling.
‘He was interested in what I was saying. And he allowed me to use that platform to save the lives of many people.’
This weekend Johnson joined a raft of stars including former Denver Broncos running back Terrell Davies and controversial ex Trump aide Omarosa Newman at the official Super Bowl party of the NFL Alumni Association at the E.K. Gallery in Los Angeles last weekend.
The event was organized by Athletes for Life, founded by former NFL Pro Bowl running back Greg Bell, a charity devoted to promoting an alcohol and drug-free life and the benefits of sports to kids.
