Yaya DeCosta and Arlen Escarpeta star as Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown in the Angela Basset-directed Lifetime biopic. (Courtesy Lifetime Television)

Emily Yahr, THE WASHINGTON POST

(The Washington Post)—Though Whitney Houston’s untimely death at age 48 was one of the biggest stories in the world, Lifetime’s new biopic about the singer, “Whitney,” doesn’t include that fact. Director Angela Bassett doesn’t even want to go there – partly for logistical reasons, since it’s a TV movie and not a full-length feature. Plus, because seeing the tragedy would “break our hearts” again.

In February 2012, the night before the Grammy Awards, Houston was found dead in a hotel bathtub; the cause of death was listed as drowning, heart disease and cocaine use. Though “Whitney” (airing Saturday night on Lifetime) does address Houston’s problems with addiction, the film ends years before she passes away.

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