Aaliyah’s family wants to destroy the movie about her life

Aaliyah’s family apparently hasn’t bought into the new biopic that is set to be created by the Lifetime Network.  The project is already deemed controversial after the actress Zendaya was chosen to play Aaliyah.  Those who love Aaliyah are saying that Zendaya doesn’t look like the deceased singer and that a better actress could have been chosen for the important role.

Now, the film has another enemy.  The family of Aaliyah herself has come forward to say that they are not interested in supporting the project.  In fact, they’ve promised to stop the production altogether.  This is a steep hurdle for the producers of the film, since public sentiment for Aaliyah and her family may cause people to not support the movie.

Aaliyah died suddenly in a plane crash in 2001, but her memory remains strong among her most loyal followers.   Aaliyah’s uncle and former manager, Barry Hankerson, told TMZ that he is angry about the film.  He also says that the network never let the family know that they were making the movie in the first place.   This hasn’t sat well with the family on any level.

Hankerson says that the family is going to try to block any use of Aaliyah’s music, and do everything else they can to hurt the project.  In fact, they’ve hired an attorney to fight the production and to stop its release.  The family doesn’t have a problem with a film being made, but appears to be insulted that they were not included.  Being excluded may also mean that they are upset for financial reasons too, since Aaliyah’s brand is worth a great deal of money.

Aaliyah’s family says that they believe that the singer’s legacy is too big for a made-for-TV film.  Instead, they believe that her life should be celebrated as a feature in the movie theatres, similar to the life of the Notorious B.I.G.

The film is set to be based on the book Aaliyah: More Than a Woman by Christopher Farley.   Aaliyah got her start on Star Search at the age of 10 and then went on to become one of the biggest R&B singers in the world.

What do you think?  Is it all about the money?

If you want to see where Aaliyah got her start, you can watch her on Star Search in the clip below.  We have to ask though – does she look a little old in this video?  She’s only 10, but could easily pass for a teenager.  Watch it here.