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Actor Jesse L. Martin fears his plans to produce and star in a biopic about legendary soul icon Marvin Gaye are not meant to be because it's proving impossible to bring to fruition.

Find: Marvin Gaye videos, photos and more

The former "Law & Order" star has been attached to "Sexual Healing" since 2008, when he signed on to help James Gandolfini of "The Sopranos" bring the tragic singer's life story, adapted from Steven Turner's book "Trouble Man," to the big screen.

Photo gallery: Marvin Gaye and other Motown superstars

Director Julien Temple took charge of the movie in February, taking over from previous filmmakers Cameron Crowe and F. Gary Gray, but the project has been hit by a series of problems and delays due to difficulties clearing the rights to Gaye's music.

Martin admits he's no longer holding out for the role.

"[Making the film is] impossible," he tells WENN. "It's just not ... I don't know [if it'll happen]. I mean, I just sort of threw that one up to the universe and said, 'If it's meant to be, it'll be,' but it seems impossible to put together. It really does. It just hasn't happened."

"Sexual Healing" is just one of several Gaye biopics in the works, but Martin says all of the films have faced the same licensing issues and that he's now contemplating other ways to tell the story.

He says, "There's five or six [other Gaye projects] in the works. I actually feel less pressure. There's so many stories out there trying to happen that it just seems like it might be impossible. Nobody's done it yet. We haven't done it, nobody else has either, so there seems to be a reason you haven't seen that story on the big screen yet. I don't know what it is, but we're gonna have to change tactics and do it onstage, or something like that. That would actually be a great idea! So we'll see, we'll see."