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Naomi Ackie has said she’s “potentially putting myself in the firing line” for playing Whitney Houston in the upcoming biopic I Wanna Dance With Somebody.

READ MORE: ‘I Wanna Dance with Somebody’ review: A flawed but fitting tribute to a complex icon

The actress, who is best-known for playing a resistance fighter in Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker, discussed portraying the iconic singer in a new interview with The Independent.

“I know that by playing Whitney I’m potentially putting myself in the firing line,” she said. “Though I’m more aware of [what I’m getting into] because I’m 31 and she was 19 when she entered the industry.”

However, Ackie admitted that she’s still daunted by the prospect of becoming a major star. “I love being in front of the camera and telling stories, but [fame] feels alien to me. I can already see my life changing. And I really like my life!”

Naomi Ackie as Whitney Houston in ‘I Wanna Dance with Somebody’. CREDIT: Sony Pictures

Directed by Kasi Lemmons, I Wanna Dance With Somebody focuses more on the triumphant moments in Houston’s life, rather than her struggles with drug addiction and a number of scandals. Ackie explained why she felt that was the right move for the story, and why the positive aspects of her life far outweigh the negative.

“We like the binaries of good and bad,” she said. “But I’m a big believer that you can be many things at once.

“When I think about Whitney – yes, obviously there are the drugs and her illness of addiction. But in comparison to the amount that she gave us musically, and especially if you’re of a minority – whether that’s your sexuality or the colour of your skin – the access she provided us is huge.”

She added: “On top of that, the sacrifices she made that allow people like me to even play her in the first place. Without Whitney, or so many other pioneers of that time, we wouldn’t even be talking about diversity today. To me, that far outweighs any of the other parts of her life.”

In a three-star review of the new biopic, NME wrote: “Ackie’s performance as the late superstar is genuinely transformative. She doesn’t just nail Houston’s distinctive speaking voice and stage mannerisms – the lip quivers, the dramatic hand gestures – but also captures her plucky spirit.”

‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ will be released in UK cinemas on December 26.

The post Naomi Ackie says she’s putting herself in “firing line” for playing Whitney Houston in new biopic appeared first on NME.

People throw the word visionary around a little liberally nowadays. Well, people have diluted a host of words through overuse, but visionary is a specifically bizarre one. Throughout history, you can count the number of people who were true visionaries in their field on both hands. — Read the rest

Santa Camp is real, and it’s where all Santas are welcome. The HBO Max documentary, which debuted in November, chronicles the laughter and tears inside New Hampshire’s Santa Camp, where Santas, Mrs. Clauses, and Elves all learn how to be their best selves. — Read the rest

If you need a little bit of automotive-induced joy in your life, might I recommend Cars Shaped Like A Friend? Gimmick accounts are a dime a dozen on Twitter, but the whimsy of this one helps it stands out- every so often, it posts pictures of friendly-looking cars, using criteria that don’t seem to have much consistency but are extremely endearing. — Read the rest

The joke is so old, it’s a cliché. Personally, I’m convinced doctors are just using it as an excuse at this point. A self-fulfilling prophecy. A dog chasing its tail. The Ouroboros of handwriting. Yes, I’m talking about not being able to read your doctor’s writing.  — Read the rest

In case you missed it, one of the biggest leaks in gaming history went down last September, resulting in over 90 videos of the in-development Grand Theft Auto 6 being distributed over the Internet. Evidently, Take-Two is still sore over the loss, considering the takedown notice they issued over a Goat Simulator 3 ad using a snippet of the leaked footage. — Read the rest

It seems like you can’t go a week without hearing how Netflix keeps breaking its own records. The streaming giant has been on quite the roll throughout 2022 and is looking to close out the year with a similar showing. Several months ago, Stranger Things season four dominated the conversation online with a series of scenes that became meme fodder. — Read the rest

3M announced plans to stop manufacturing perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) substances by 2025. PFAS are used in consumer, commercial and industrial products, and is such a large part of 3M’s bottom line that Reuters reports “3M expects related total pre-tax charges of about $1.3 billion to $2.3 billion over the course of its PFAS exit.” — Read the rest

Touring the Most host Jordan Hurt tours an extraordinary home in upstate New York, transformed by artist Katwise into a one-of-a-kind masterpiece. In 2009, Kat and her partner bought a run-down farmhouse near Woodstock and began a massive renovation project on the 19th century property. — Read the rest

James Cameron has revealed that he shot scenes for Avatar 3 and 4 in advance to avoid Stranger Things-style ageing issues with the younger cast members.

The recently released Avatar: The Way Of Water introduced a number of child characters, including Tuk (Trinity Jo-Li Bliss, who was 7 years old when cast and is now 13) and Spider (Jack Champion, who was 12 when cast, but is now 18).

READ MORE: ‘Avatar: The Way Of Water’ review: bold, beautiful and very, very blue

In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Cameron said that the first, second and third act of the fourth film had to be completed in one production, because Champion was “growing like a weed”.

“Otherwise, you get – and I love Stranger Things – but you get the Stranger Things effect, where they’re supposed to still be in high school [but] they look like they’re 27,” Cameron said. “You know, I love the show. It’s okay, we’ll suspend disbelief. We like the characters. But, you know.”

James Cameron CREDIT: Gabriel Olsen/Getty Images for Absolut Elyx

In the same interview, producer Jon Landau said that all newly introduced characters will continue to be part of the Avatar story in the upcoming sequels.

“Each movie is going to introduce audiences to new clans, new cultures on Pandora,” Landau said. “Once we introduce a character, they stay a part of the ongoing evolution. We just add to it.

“So you can expect to see the Metkayina that you meet in this movie in subsequent movies. There are other clans that we’ll introduce in movie 3 that you’ll see in movie 4 and so on and so forth.”

The Avatar franchise is set to consist of five films in total, with a third, fourth and fifth yet to be released. However, Cameron recently suggested that the series could end after the third film if it doesn’t perform at the box office.

“The market could be telling us we’re done in three months, or we might be semi-done, meaning, ‘OK, let’s complete the story within movie three, and not go on endlessly,’ if it’s just not profitable,” the filmmaker told Total Film.

Filming on Avatar 3 is said to be finished, having been shot simultaneously with The Way Of Water. The third film is scheduled to be released on December 20, 2024.

The post James Cameron shot ‘Avatar 3’ and 4 early to avoid ‘Stranger Things’ ageing issue appeared first on NME.