Tracey Scott Wilson is the screenwriter of the Aretha Franklin biopic RESPECT, starring Aretha Franklin as the Queen of Soul. The film, which was released by MGM in August, takes one of the most famous women in the world and tells the little-known story of her journey to find her own iconic voice.
In approaching the daunting task of telling the story behind the icon, Tracey focused on creating a character-driven script which provides a deep look at the childhood, hardships and early achievements of one of the most successful music artists in history. She created a script which looks at the humanity of Aretha, a notoriously private woman, which resulted in a film that is entertaining, moving and joyous.
While RESPECT is Tracey’s feature film debut, she has an extensive resume across television and theater. On the TV side, Tracey served as a co-executive producer and writer on the critically acclaimed limited series FOSSE/VERDON at FX and THE MORNING SHOW for Apple TV+. Before that, she was a co-executive producer on FX’s award-winning series THE AMERICANS, where she wrote for four seasons and received two WGA awards, two Peabody awards and a Golden Globe. Tracey is also a renowned playwright, and her plays include BUZZER (Guthrie Theater, The Public Theater), THE GOOD NEGRO and THE STORY (both at The Public Theater and the Goodman Theater).
