Well if this isn’t controversy, I don’t know what is.
Reportedly, the estate for Mahalia Jackson is not feeling Fantasia Barrino playing the role of the late gospel singer in a biopic due out in the fall of 2012, because she is having a child out of wedlock for the second time.
“The family thinks if Fantasia plays the role, it’s going to sully the name of Mahalia. They think she’s got the wrong image, having a child out of wedlock,” executive producer for the film, Adrian Taylor, told the New York Post.
Fantasia, 27, is six months pregnant and the father of her child is her married boyfriend Antwaun Cook. This could be another reason Mahalia Jackson’s estate is not comfortable with Barrino playing the iconic gospel singer.
According to the NY Post, producers are also furious with Fantasia for not telling them about her unexpected pregnancy until she was four months in. “She [initially] claimed that she was putting on weight for the role,” an insider said.
Production of the movie has been pushed back because of Fantasia’s pregnancy. Her dude date is Dec. 27. It has caused major delays in the film’s schedule. Director Euzhan Palcy may be forced to drop out of the project, because re-scheduling may conflict with his calendar.
Barrino has been asked to start filming as soon as January and is in negotiations to alter her contract to allow time for breast-feeding and nurturing her child on set.
In the meantime, producers are working to find a replacement if Fantasia doesn’t agree to start shooting after New Year’s. Singer/Record Producer Missy Elliott has been suggested.
