It's been a few months since we learned that a biopic of Whitney Houston was in the works. Now we know two things about it: the film is currently called I Wanna Dance With Somebody and Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker's Naomi Ackie will star as the legendary singer.
Houston's life, in which she won six Grammy Awards, 16 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards and two Emmy Awards, among many others, was a mixture of incredible success (including starring in and singing the theme to The Bodyguard) and sad lows. She was inducted earlier this year into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Director Stella Meghie has the backing of the Houston estate and Bohemian Rhapsody's Anthony McCarten writing the script. And now she has the star she's been seeking: “We spent the better part of the last year in an exhaustive search for an actress who could embody Whitney Houston," Meghie tells The Hollywood Reporter. "Naomi Ackie impressed us at every stage of the process. I was moved by her ability to capture the stage presence of a global icon while bringing humanity to her interior life."