Bruno Mars denies he is playing Prince in upcoming biopic

Bruno Mars' representatives have denied a recent report claiming Netflix wanted him to play Prince in an upcoming biopic.

According to The Daily Mirror, the online streaming service was allegedly planning to develop a new movie dedicated to the life of the music icon, who died at the age of 57 from an accidental fentanyl overdose in April 2016. The publication reported that the 24K Magic hitmaker was "at the top of Netflix wish list" with a movie source insisting the gig would be "the most nerve-racking move of Bruno's career" if he were to accept the role.

The story was picked up and circulated by a number of outlets, but according to Billboard, the singer's representatives have announced that the report is "100 per cent false." Netflix also added that there was no such film in development.

Bruno has previously cited the Purple Rain singer as one of his biggest musical influences and led tributes to Prince at the 2017 Grammy Awards where he delivered a show-stopping performance of his hit, Let’s Go Crazy.

Though best known for his catchy tunes, the songwriter has picked up some acting experience during the course of his entertainment career. He made his acting debut as a child in 1992 comedy Honeymoon in Vegas, where he paid a character called Little Elvis alongside an all-star cast including James Caan, Nicolas Cage and Sarah Jessica Parker.

A little more recently, he turned his talents to voice acting and took on the character of Roberto, a confident and charismatic Blue macaw, in Rio 2. Jesse Eisenberg, Anne Hathaway, will.i.am and Jamie Foxx also provided voices for the flick, and director Carlos Saldanha decided to recruit Bruno after he saw him perform on an episode of Saturday Night Live in 2016. The Finesse singer added his own personal touches to his character, and also provided a song for the soundtrack: Welcome Back.