Zendaya Coleman has been replaced by Alexandra Shipp as Aaliyah in the upcoming Lifetime movie, and she wants her followers to know why.
Zendaya Coleman was originally cast as Aaliyah in the Lifetime Biopic based on the book Aaliyah: More Than A Woman. In order to dispel any rumors, Zendaya went on Instagram to explain why Alexandra Shipp will take on the role instead. In a series of 3 videos, she says:
"Let me just explain something. The reason why I chose not to do the Aaliyah movie had nothing to do with the haters or people telling me that I couldn't do it, I wasn't talented enough, or I wasn't black enough. It had absolutely nothing to do with that.”
"The main reasons were that the production value wasn't there, there were complications with the music rights, and I just felt like it wasn't being handled delicately considering the situation. And I tried my best to reach out to the family on my own, and I wrote a letter, but I was unable to do so; therefore, I felt not really morally okay with moving forward with the project."
"With all that being said, congratulations to the new woman playing Aaliyah; I only hope she does not have to deal with half the hate that I had to deal with. And remember that we are all human beings trying to do what we love to do. Let's practice motivation and love; not discrimination and hate. All right?"
The Disney star finished her announcement after congratulating her replacement with a kiss to the camera –"Muah!"
RELATED: Zendaya Quits Lifetime's Controversial Aaliyah Biopic
The Lifetime biopic will be executive produced by Wendy Williams. Williams tweeted yesterday that production will start later this month.
