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Image via Wikipedia
Just yesterday, the trailer for the upcoming biopic about Nina Simone’s life was released. The upcoming film, which is titled Nina, stars Zoe Saldana in the titular role. The film has had its fair share of controversy ever since its announcement, and now that the trailer for the long-postponed film is finally out, it looks as if the controversy surrounding the film is only going to continue to heat up.
When the first trailer surfaced just yesterday, Saldana tweeted a Simone quote, “I’ll tell you what freedom is to me- No Fear… I mean really, no fear.” Shortly thereafter, Simone’s estate replied by saying, “Cool story but please take Nina’s name out your mouth. For the rest of your life.” They followed up the tweet with another, saying, “Hopefully people begin to understand this is painful. Gut-wrenching, heartbreaking, nauseating, soul-crushing. It shall pass, but for now…”
As Rolling Stone points out, Nina hasn’t received much support if any from Simone’s estate since the film was greenlit. Back in 2012, Simone’s daughter Lisa Simone Kelly told The New York Times that she wasn’t too happy with Saldana’s casting as Simone: “My mother was raised at a time when she was told her nose was too wide [and] her skin was too dark. Appearance-wise, this is not the best choice.”
Nina is due to release in theaters and video-on-demand services on April 22.
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