Whitney Houston estate considering legal action over late singer’s scrapped hologram after it debuts in variety show without permission

Whitney Houston’s new hologram surfaced last month and the people behind it may be facing legal action. The hologram was originally set to debut on the 2016 finale of the Voice, but Whitney’s estate cancelled reasoning that “the quality didn’t meet her high standards.” 

The variety show in which Whitney’s hologram was debuted included “live performances and appearances from iconic deceased celebrities.”

After “perfecting” Whitney Houston’s likeness, the producers entered the hologram into the performance. However, Houston’s estate claims that they “had no legal standing to re-build or re-brand the hologram.”

The estate originally backed the creation of the hologram when it was first announced and the original plan was to have Whitney Houston’s hologram perform its own headlining show. 

However, the estate decided to cancel when they saw the hologram because they “didn’t like the hologram’s look.”

It is not clear where this potential litigation is heading, but its likely that the fans were excited to see Whitney Houston’s music come to life. 

See Kevin Kayhart, Whitney Houston estate considering legal action over late singer’s scrapped hologram after it debuts in variety show without permission, Daily Mail (U.K.), October 4, 2020.

Special thanks to Joel C. Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.