With the debut of the reality show “The Houstons: On Our Own” on Oct. 24, the struggles and dramas of Whitney Houston’s family members to move on after her death will all be displayed to the world, the show’s producers promise—even the engagement of Whitney’s daughter Bobbi Kristina to Nick Gordon, who was Whitney’s adopted godson.
The trailer for the show reveals that Bobbi Kristina’s family, including her aunt and uncle and grandmother, are staunchly opposed to the pairing of the two. Whitney’s brother Gary is even seen in the trailer stating that he doesn’t like Nick’s attitude.
“We don’t shy away from any tabloid topics, like Nick, whether he is her brother or is he blood related or not blood related,” the show’s producer Tracey Baker-Simmons told MTV News. “Now he’s the boyfriend and how the family really feels about it and dealing with it and where Bobbi and her father Bobby’s relationship stands. There’s a lot of Bobby talk and a surprise ending as it relates to that.”
While many fans were troubled by the idea of Bobbi Kristina having to mourn the death of her mother in front of so many probing eyes, this reality show looks like it is actually exploiting the 19-year-old’s struggles to recover from an incredibly difficult year. After all, Bobbi has already become a tabloid staple, with her suspected drug use and her controversial relationship with Nick, 22.
The trailer makes it clear that the show will delve into some extremely touchy Houston family matters, including Whitney’s sister-in-law and manager Pat Houston’s management of her estate and Cissy Houston’s volatile relationship with her granddaughter.
“I have been working with Simmons-Shelley over the past few years developing a project suitable for myself and our family,” Pat Houston said in a statement earlier this year. “The unexpected passing of Whitney certainly affects the direction of the show. However, it is my hope that others will be enlightened as they watch our family heal and move forward.”
This is a family that has brought its disagreements into the courts just in the past week in an effort to delay Bobbi Kristina’s inheritance. As it stands, Bobbi Kristina is the only heir to Houston’s estate, but Houston’s mother Cissy and sister-in-law don’t believe that Bobbi Kristina is prepared to handle the large endowment. According to Houston’s will, last updated in February 1993, Bobbi Kristina is set to receive 10% of the estate’s value when she turns 20, a sixth when she turns 21, and the remainder when she turns thirty. This includes all present and future assets earned in Houston’s name.
A request filed by the family in court calls for the creation of a “testamentary trust,” that would split the control of the estate and allow the family to have a more direct role in how Bobbi Kristina receives the money. According to the document, Cissy feels that her granddaughter is “a highly visible target for those who would exert undue influence over her inheritance and/or seek to benefit from respondent’s resources and celebrity.”
Though Whitney chose not to update her will for almost two decades, the two trustees feel that the schedule of payments to Bobbi Kristina “would likely directly conflict with and cause the opposite of [Whitney’s] intent to provide long-term financial security and protection for her child.” No doubt there is uncertainty with the family as to whether or not Bobbi Kristina would be able to properly handle such a fortune.
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