Dreams of playing a really B.I.G. role - Hollywood is short on Biggie look-alikes, so a biopic puts the call out.

NEW YORK CITY -- When it comes to playing Biggie on the big screen, size matters. Take it from De'Andre Neal, a 6-foot-3, 315-pound bouncer with fingers as thick as Twix bars. The Brooklyn native was one of more than 100 hopefuls who turned out for an open casting call on a soundstage in Manhattan's meat-packing district, trying to fill the size-13 shoes of Christopher Wallace, a.k.a. Notorious B.I.G., in "Notorious," a new biopic about the slain rapper.

"Seriously, I saw people who shouldn't even be here," said Neal, 29, his voice so deep it could give you the bends. "There's one kid who looked like Eminem. This ain't no '8 Mile' thing, man."

Ten years after Wallace was shot to death at the age of 24 in a drive-by in Los Angeles, Biggie has come back to life in the form of mostly unknowns vying for the chance to play the man who once described himself as "heartthrob never, black and ugly as ever."

Because of the paucity of Hollywood actors who resemble the rap heavyweight, "Notorious" distributor Fox Searchlight hosted the casting call to find an authentic character to play Biggie, whose fans still consider him the hip-hop king of New York. "Nobody got a better flow than Biggie, to this day," said Brooklynite Kenneth Washington Jr., 21.

Joining the line on the sidewalk in a neighborhood known for its chic boutiques and exclusive clubs, contenders came wearing Kangol caps and Coogi sweaters, Versace shades and Jesus pendants on heavy silver chains. While some quietly studied their scripts as they waited to be called in, others boasted about their similarities to the slain savior of East Coast hip-hop.

"From the size to the lazy eye, we look alike," said William "Big Wayne" Hunter, 34, who wore a blue suede suit and a "Godfather" hat cocked to the side.

Shaun Monroe and Karl Ellis, longshoremen from New Jersey known around the docks as Biggie and Biggie Jr., respectively, came to support each other. "The real truth is, he put fat black guys back on the map," Monroe, the bigger of the two, said.

After nearly three months of watching video auditions that aspiring actors from around the country submitted at www.biggiecasting.com, "Notorious" director George Tillman ("Men of Honor," "Soul Food") and producers Wayne Barrow and Mark Pitts (the rapper's former managers) were hoping that their Biggie was in the building. Voletta Wallace, Biggie's mother and a "Notorious" producer, was there to watch the contenders perform her son's song, "Warning."