The Whitney Houston biopic, currently in development, has switched directors. “I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” the film about the legendary singer’s life and tragic early death, the one being made with the full participation of the Houston estate, was going to be helmed by Stella Meghie (of the criminally underseen Issa Rae-starring romantic drama “The Photograph”). And now she’s out, due to the always-vague explanation of “creative differences.”
Stepping in to direct is veteran filmmaker Kasi Lemmons (“Harriet,” “Eve’s Bayou”), working from a script by “Bohemian Rhapsody” scribe Anthony McCarten. So far only two cast members have been announced: British actress Naomi Ackie (“The End of the F***ing World”) as Houston and Moses Ingram (“The Queen’s Gambit”) as Robyn Crawford. The fact that Crawford will be part of this story is major for queer audiences, but we’d be lying if we said we weren’t concerned that her relationship with Whitney will be straight washed for the comfort of non-queers. For now, we’re going to trust that Lemmons will know how important that is, and we’ll be saving all our love for it.
