Earlier this month, TMZ reported that Aaliyah‘s family was incensed that they weren’t involved with the casting process for a Lifetime biopic about the late singer. Now, it’s come to light that Zendaya Coleman, the 17-year-old Disney actress who was set to appear as Aaliyah Dana Haughton, has dropped out of the production.
“I just felt the project wasn’t 100 percent there.” Coleman said to MTV. “I feel [that] production wise everything just felt a little rushed. And I think because she’s someone I admire and I love so much, it can’t be done halfway so I just decided not to do it.”
As Buzzfeed reports, production on the made-for-TV movie has been put on hold in the wake of Coleman’s departure. A Lifetime movie would have probably been easier to stomach than Chris Brown’s strange reanimation of the “Are You That Somebody” singer, but given the lack of support from Aaliyah’s relatives, don’t be surprised if the project is halted indefinitely.
