Angela Bassett Remembers Late Friend And Legend, Whitney Houston

Whitney Houston was one of the greatest music stars in history, and it is a fact many would agree on. She left a mark on everyone she worked with, and over the 30 years Houston was active in the entertainment industry, she built a huge fan base that exists till today.

She also starred in several hit films, and every actor and actress she worked with testified that she was a dream to work with. A good example is Angela Bassett, with whom she featured in a film during the mid-90s. Houston would later say that the experience was her favorite film role. 

Now, as the tenth anniversary of Houston's death approaches, the world is remembering her legacy, and Bassett is doing so too. During an interview, the actress spoke about how she has dealt with the loss of the music star. Read on to find out the relationship they shared and what Bassett had to say. 

On February 11th, 2012, Houston was found unconscious in her room at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. She was pronounced dead by paramedics later that day, and police quickly established that there was no criminal activity involved in her death. The coroner later confirmed her cause of death to be drowning and the effect of drugs and heart disease. 

On February 18th, Houston's memorial service was held, and several music stars performed, including Stevie Wonder, Kim Burrell, Cece Winans, and Alicia Keys. Many celebrities, family members, and close friends of Houston attended the service, and some gave touching remarks about her. 

Bassett was also present at the funeral, where she paid her respects to the late music icon. Houston's body was then moved to Westfield, New Jersey, and she was buried the next day in Fairview Cemetery, in the plot, beside her father, John Russell Houston, who died in 2003. 

During a recent interview with InStyle, Bassett was asked how she dealt with Houston's death over the years. She was also asked about her feelings regarding the recent death of Chadwick Boseman, with whom she co-starred in Marvel's "Black Panther." 

She said, "The loss can be overwhelming, but I try to remain grateful for the moments I've had with them and for the contribution that they've made to my life and to culture. Instead of leaning into the loss, I lean into the blessing that their life was and will appear to be in spirit."

Bassett also said, "When you're a person of faith, you know that we are much more than just flesh and blood. We're spirit, heart, and soul as well. And we trust that those things remain with us." Bassett was very close with the two stars and was meant to act with them on "Black Panther 2" and "Getting to Happy," the sequel to "Waiting to Exhale."

In 1995, Bassett and Houston co-starred on "Waiting to Exhale," a film about four friends trying to connect despite being at different places in life, love, and their careers. Working with Houston was a dream come true for Bassett, and the two quickly became close friends outside the set. 

In 2020, she told Kevin Frazier of Entertainment Tonight, "You know, working with Whitney…we were all such a fan. So to come to know each other, to play cards, to go bowling, to that regular simple joys of life stuff? It was great. It was an awesome opportunity."

Bassett also shared that one thing that still makes her happy today is the enormous cultural impact the film had. She said, "I say it still holds up. To that point, we hadn't seen films that told the lives of older Black women. It was the first of a film that featured women for women, so it was really, you know, a trailblazer."  

In 2015, Bassett paid tribute to the late music star by directing a Lifetime movie that told the story of Houston's life and marriage to Bobby Brown. The film was titled "Whitney" and starred Yaya Decosta. 

In an interview with USA Today about the film, she said, "I pondered the regret I'd feel if I didn't do it. It was something very personal. It was almost impossible to articulate her death in the African-American community and the community at large — her beauty, her talent, her spirit. We were in love with her."

"Different media outlets reached out to me then, and I couldn't say anything. It was too soon, too raw," Bassett continued, "When this (TV movie) opportunity came, it was a gift, a way I could say what I felt about her." Despite the opposition from Houston's family, Bassett directed the film as a way to commemorate Houston's legacy.