Selena Quintanilla’s father and sister are facing a $1 million lawsuit after producing a Netflix series based on the singer.
The official documents obtained by an entertainment portal reveals that producer Moctesuma Esparza of ‘Selena’ filled a lawsuit against Abraham and Suzette Quintanilla and Netflix. The document claims that the singer’s father signed a contract agreeing to give permission for using Selena’s life stories in 1995.
The producer also claims that he along with Suzette and Abraham discussed the development of the series based on the Tejano singer’s early life in 1998. This was a follow-up to the biopic starring Jennifer Lopez.
However, their ideas never came into practice. Since that time, the family members have produced another show on Netflix, Selena: The Series. The series is produced and set to release on December 4. By creating this series, Moctesuma claims that Abraham has breached their contract.
He also accuses Netflix of ignoring his rights to Selena’s life stories. The producer had revealed in 1995 that he did not seek rights to Selena’s life story. According to another interview of the producer, he and the family had come to an informal agreement.
The agreement stated that the Quintanilla’s would have the final say on the script. The producer states in his lawsuit that the issue of rights to Selena’s life stories came up in 1998. He claims at that point they had finalized an agreement.
The streaming service released the trailer for Selena: The Series recently, hours after announcing the premiere date for season four of The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.
A Look At Selena: The Series
The teaser videos and the series of Instagram pictures have given us a look at Christian Serratos. However, Netflix has released new clips as the storyline of the series is revealed. In the trailer, Selena is seen as her younger version as she sings at her childhood home. Her parents realize how talented their child is.
The trailer further shows Selena performing with Selena y Los Dinos, as a grown-up. The band was with her siblings and later she is seen singing her solo. A montage is seen which includes her 90s wardrobe as Selena sings her superhit song, Como La Flora. The clip also shows her kissing her future husband, who was the guitarist of her band, Chris Perez.
Taylor Baez, who got to play an iconic Latinx star, revealed how her parents were huge fans of Selena. She shared that they told her about the artist and she fell in love with her. The actress said, “I watched the movie, I researched her, she’s one of my idols and she inspires me to follow my dreams.”
The Netflix series is reported to be split into two parts. The show’s creator and executive producer, Moises Zamora talked about the series. He said fans can expect to see the series dive deep into the family’s journey. This will also include the early days of their careers as they went from gig-to-gig.
Selena: The Series To Follow Family’s Journey
The creator said, “Selena was on the road since she was like 11 or 12 and it was truly a family affair. You’ll see her coming of age as she transforms into the incredibly confident superstar everyone knows and loves. We will dive into the family dynamics and will show some interesting things people don’t know about the Quintanilla’s.”
This is not the first time Selena’s life is portrayed on the screen. Back in 1997, Jennifer Lopez played the role of the iconic star in a film. Christian was a part of Walking Dead and this role might put her on the map.
The producer of the show, Jaime Dávila, has been on a mission to get Hollywood’s gatekeepers to abandon their perception about the Latinx market. He shared how so much that happens in Hollywood is that people divide Latinx.
Jaime said, “They’ll say, ‘Oh, Latino — that’s a separate category.’ What I keep trying to say and what Campanario keeps trying to say with everything we do is that we’re not a separate category. We’re part of America. We’re part of the mainstream.”
Jaime and his Campanario team who have been working together only hope to gain mainstream achievement that will open more doors for content about, and made by, Latinos in an industry that remains overwhelmingly white, despite promises for greater diversity and inclusion.
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