Barack Obama gives Drake ‘stamp of approval’ to play him in future biopic ... but which other actors could play former president?

Obama said ‘talented brother’ Drake would be his first choice

Former US President Barack Obama said Drake gets his 'stamp of approval' to play him in a future biopic. AFP, Getty Images

Barack Obama has made his choice of actor he would like to play him on the big screen.

The former president, 59, revealed in an interview with Complex: "I will say this, Drake seems to be able to do anything he wants. I mean, that is a talented, talented brother. So if the time comes and he's ready …"

Obama also revealed that his two daughters, Sasha and Malia, would be happy to see the Hotline Bling star portray their dad in a biopic.

“Drake has, more importantly, I think, my household’s stamp of approval,” Obama said. “I suspect Malia and Sasha would be just fine with it.”

Drake, 34, a Canadian who began his career acting in the 2001 teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation and 2007's Charlie Bartlett, has previously made it clear he would love to play the president, telling Paper magazine back in 2010: "I hope somebody makes a movie about Obama's life soon because I could play him. I watch all the addresses. Any time I see him on TV, I don't change the channel, I definitely pay attention and listen to the inflections of his voice."

And while we would love to see Drake portray Obama on film, here are some other actors we think should definitely get an audition …

Jordan Peele

The 41-year-old American star may be best known for his comedy skills in sketch show Key & Peele, but the talented actor, writer, director and producer has shown he can turn his hand to anything. Scoring a huge hit with 2017 horror Get Out, which he wrote, directed and played a small part in, Peele most recently co-produced HBO's Lovecraft Country and narrated the rebooted The Twilight Zone.

Devon Terrell

The American-Australian actor, 28, has already cut his teeth playing Obama in 2016 film Barry. The film, which is available to stream on Netflix, focuses on Obama's experiences at Columbia University in 1981.

"I respect him so much as a person that I wanted to give him every ounce of my life," Terrell told Vogue about getting into character to portray the history-making president. "I learnt how to become left-handed, learned how to write left-handed, play basketball left-handed. We were constantly trying to find pieces of information to become experts, so that when people watch the film they feel like it's a full-fledged character."

Giancarlo Esposito

If the director is looking for an actor to play Obama in his later years, they should look no further than Giancarlo Esposito, 62. Currently playing the role of bad guy Moff Gideon in season two of Star Wars spin-off The Mandalorian, the Danish-born American actor won a legion of fans as Gus Fring in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. Plus, he has experience playing a powerful leader in the Far Cry 6 video game, in which he is "El Presidente" Anton Castillo.

Chiwetel Ejiofor

If casting directors are open to having a British actor play Obama, then Chiwetel Ejiofor, 43, should be top of that list. The actor has had the opportunity to showcase plenty of calm and measured Obama-like traits on the big screen, as Mordo in Doctor Strange, Trywell Kamkwamba in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (which he also directed), and as Vincent Kapoor in The Martian. He also features in this IMDb poll of 14 actors who would do Obama justice on screen.

Kingsley Ben-Adir

Another Brit who would surely be in contention is Kingsley Ben-Adir. And Ben-Adir, 34, might have the edge over Drake as, like Devon, he too has experience of portraying Obama on screen. Starring as Obama in US mini-series The Comey Rule, Ben-Adir played the former president opposite Brendan Gleeson's Donald Trump.