Highest 2 Lowest is the latest feature from acclaimed filmmaker Spike Lee, loosely adapting Akira Kurosawa’s popular 1963 thriller High to Low. The movie centers around a powerful music mogul who finds himself caught up in a dangerous ransom plot, triggering some intense consequences for his family. The recent trailer for Highest 2 Lowest has already gathered plenty of traction online.

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of this upcoming thriller, beyond Spike Lee’s involvement, is the film’s hugely impressive ensemble. Highest 2 Lowest marks another collaboration between Lee and Denzel Washington, but the film also features performances from Jeffrey Wright, Dean Winters, and Ice Spice. One cast member in particular has received immense praise from the director for his surprisingly powerful performance.

A$AP Rocky Has A Spike Lee-Approved Role In Highest 2 Lowest

Although he’s primarily known for his musical career, A$AP Rocky has begun to turn his attention to acting over the past few months. He began this year with a role in If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, which was a mᴀssive breakout hit from the Sundance Film Festival, and he’s finishing this year in Spike Lee’s latest joint, which premiered at Cannes.

This is such an impressive achievement for somebody with very few credits to their name so far, but A$AP Rocky’s acting success is absolutely deserved. The American rapper delivered a very nuanced and entertaining performance in If I Had Legs I’d Kick You, and Spike Lee’s recent comments seem to suggest he’s just as impressive in Highest 2 Lowest:

“Yeah, don’t sleep on A$AP. In this film, Denzel and A$AP go toe-to-toe… I’ve done five films with Denzel, and a lot of times when he’s in a scene with somebody, they just get overwhelmed. He’s one of the greatest living actors today, but A$AP wasn’t having that. Toe-to-toe, I mean, they were going at it.”

Highest 2 Lowest marks Apple’s follow-up feature to F1: The Movie, which was an enormous hit this summer, so there’s every chance that Spike Lee’s movie could be equally impactful when it comes out later this month. A$AP Rocky is clearly taking his acting career seriously, and this could be the movie that really puts him on the grid as a formidable acting talent.

Rocky’s musical talents have never been in doubt; the rapper has 3 Grammy nominations to his name and multiple top-50 singles. However, it’s not always easy for musicians to break into the acting scene, as it’s often seen as a side project and, unfairly, not taken seriously. Thankfully, there have been several musicians to break this illusion in the past few years.

People like Harry Styles, Lady Gaga, and David Bowie are among the most high-profile singers who later became actors, but the transition isn’t exclusive to the world of pop and rock. Plenty of hip-hop and rap artists have made the jump too, much like Rocky in Highest 2 Lowest. Ice Cube, Ludacris, and even Will Smith are prime examples that switching between music and acting is possible.