Kevin Macdonald, director of The Last King of Scotland, Marley and the Oscar-winning One Day in September, is to make the first officially sanctioned documentary about the life and death of the singer Whitney Houston.
Described as the definitive story of the global superstar, Macdonald’s film will track her life from childhood to her drug-related death at the age of 48. The Scottish film-maker is promising to pull no punches, yet hopes to leave fans with a positive reflection on Houston’s glorious career.
“The story that is never told about Whitney is just how brilliant she was as an artist. By many measures she had the greatest voice of the last 50 years,” said the director. “She changed the way pop music was sung, bringing it back full circle to its blues and gospel roots. She was also unique in being a black pop star who sold in countries where black artists don’t traditionally sell.
“We have access to never before seen footage of Whitney that charts her whole life from her beginnings singing in her church’s gospel choir, to the day of her tragic death and three decades of her music including demo recordings, rare performances and audio archive. Although we won’t shy away from the darker parts of Whitney’s life – her descent into addiction – I want audiences to walk out of the cinema and feel positive about Whitney and her music. I want to reveal a woman that even her most diehard fans never knew and a woman those new to her life and music will never forget.”
Houston sold more than 200m albums and remains the only artist to have seven consecutive No 1s in the US. The documentary has the backing of Houston’s estate and crucially will have full access to the singer’s music.
Houston was found dead in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton hotel on 11 February 2012. The Los Angeles coroner’s office found the cause of death to be accidental drowning, with atherosclerotic heart disease and cocaine use described as contributing factors.
The documentary will be released in the UK by Altitude Films, the company behind Asif Kapadia’s Amy, about the life and death of the iconic British singer Amy Winehouse.
