14 DAY TRIAL // Late last week, Lifetime announced that it would produce and air the first Whitney Houston biopic, helmed by Whitney’s longtime friend Angela Bassett. An estimated air date was set for 2015 but chances are the film will either not be made at all or be pushed back.
The singer’s family is opposing the project on the grounds that she was far too important to music and culture to get the television treatment, TMZ reports.
Indeed, with her impressive sales, her unmistakable voice and the sheer number of hits she released throughout the years, Whitney holds a page of her own in history books and has no rival.
On a more gossipy note, the singer’s often scandalous private life, her much publicized struggle with drug addiction and her abusive relationship with Bobby Brown, is perfect material for a movie-long feature drama that could outsell many biopics released in recent years.
Whether that’s cause for the family to feel offended that she’s getting the small screen treatment first is a very good guess. The bottom line is that they do feel this way and are even entertaining the thought of taking the matter to court, filing a lawsuit to block the production. So far, they have made it clear that they’re not endorsing the film in any way.
“Whitney is certainly worthy of more than a television movie. If Whitney were here today, this would not be happening,” Pat Houston says for the celebrity e-zine. Admittedly, the family expected a film like Michael Jackson’s “This Is It,” a project on a much bigger scale than a Lifetime biopic.
We have a feeling that we would not be having this conversation if HBO had initiated this. Consider the success they had with the unofficial Liberace biopic “Behind the Candelabra” with Matt Damon and Michael Douglas, and how many awards that film got.
Then, to compare, consider Lifetime’s Elizabeth Taylor biopic with Lindsay Lohan, which turned out to be one huge joke. To put it differently, Lifetime doesn’t have the resources (financial and otherwise) that HBO has – and most definitely not those that a movie studio could dispose of. Inevitably, this translates into lower production costs and lower quality.
As the Houston family is gearing up for the legal attack, the network is refusing to comment on the situation. Bassett is also keeping mum but, then again, she said all she had to say in the official announcement.
“I have such regard for both Whitney’s and Bobby’s amazing talents and accomplishments, and I feel a responsibility in the telling of their story. Their humanity and bond fascinates us all,” she said.