Rihanna has been cast to voice Smurfette in Paramount and Nickelodeon’s upcoming Smurfs movie! The global superstar, 35, appeared on stage at Cinemcaon 2023 on April 27 to announce the news herself, calling her animated character a “blue badass”, per The Hollywood Reporter. “I hope this gives me cool points with my kids one day,” she added. Rihanna also joked that she originally auditioned for the Papa Smurf role, “but it didn’t work out,” according to Variety.
As fans know, Rihanna is currently expecting her second child with her boyfriend of about three years, A$AP Rocky. Unlike her recent bump-hugging outfits, the “Diamonds” singer opted for a loose-fitting, long-sleeve dress that appeared to mimic washed-out denim. The baggy dress flowed to the floor and featured a high slit, showing off her matching sweatpants underneath. The Grammy Award-winning singer wore her thick black hair in a bun and wore some light blue eyeshadow to match her outfit. She revealed she’s in her third trimester and gushed that she would get to show up to work in sweats.
Rihanna is not just voicing the popular cartoon; She is also part of the production team and will write and record original songs for the untitled film as well, per Variety. The film will be a musical and will revolve around an important question: “What is a Smurf?” Chris Miller, who directed 2011’s Puss in Boots, is set to direct the movie. Its release date is slated for Feb. 14, 2025.
Rihanna’s project announcement comes as her fans eagerly await her highly anticipated ninth studio album. “I want it to be this year,” she told British Vogue in February of her plans to release R9. “Like, honestly, it’d be ridiculous if it’s not this year. But I just want to have fun. I just want to make music and make videos.” Of course, creating music videos isn’t a simple task, which she made sure to mention. “And I need the right background music with the visuals. I can’t just go shoot a video to me talking,” she explained. Her last album, Anti, debuted in 2016 and spawned the No. 1 hit, “Work”.
Of course, Rihanna hasn’t been taking a seven-year vacation. She’s been beyond busy hustling in the beauty and lingerie space with her Fenty Beauty makeup and skincare line and her lingerie line, Savage X Fenty. Last fall, she debuted her fourth annual Savage x Fenty fashion show and released a single, “Lift Me Up”, which appears on the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack. And during all of that, of course, she was adjusting to being a mother of one while preparing for her epic Super Bowl LVII performance, where she revealed she is expecting baby No. 2.
So, how does Rihanna stay so busy while executing everything beautifully? She has a supportive team behind her. “The secret to Rihanna being able to balance it all is the great team she has behind her in all areas and that includes [A$AP] Rocky; He’s her MVP,” a source close to the singer told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY in Nov. 2022. “He is such an amazing dad and partner to her; He is key in helping her do it all. And she has also built a very tight team of people around her that she trusts to help her keep every aspect of her work life under control so that she can devote most of her time to doing all the creative [tasks].”