Naomi Ackie: She embodies Whitney Houston in a new biopic

Naomi Ackie
She embodies Whitney Houston in a new biopic

The biopic about the life of soul singer and actress Whitney Houston (1963-2012) knows its leading actress. British actress Naomi Ackie (28) accepts the challenge. She is known from "Star Trek: The Rise of Skywalker" or "Lady Macbeth", among others.

The biopic "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" is created according to the US site "The Hollywood Reporter" under the direction of Stella Meghie ("You next to me"). This will receive support from music producer Clive Davis (88) and Pat Houston, among others. The latter was Whitney Houston's long-time manager, also sister-in-law and today's administrator of the estate. According to the report, she gave her consent to use music by the deceased artist and original vocal recordings for the film. The script for "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" comes from Anthony McCarten (59), who is responsible for the script for the Queen biopic "Bohemian Rhapsody".

Naomi Ackie scores with "extraordinary range"

Why should Ackie of all people slip into the role of Houston? Director Meghie explains, "We spent most of the past year looking for an actress who could portray Whitney Houston." Ackie has "impressed" the team at every stage of the process. The 28-year-old has the ability to "capture the stage presence of a global icon and at the same time bring humanity into her soul life".

And music producer Davis also raves about the aspiring actress. "Naomi Ackie's screen tests were so powerful," he says, "that a shiver ran down my spine." Although Houston's voice was used for all of the songs in the biopic, Ackie's "extraordinary breadth of acting" made it possible to "masterfully capture Whitney's unique charm, star power and of course her personal struggles." The publication of the film biography is planned for November 2022.

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