The film received backlash after the opening weekend for what celebrities claim to be a wrongful portrayal of legendary rapper Tupac. As previously reported, Jada Pinkett Smith claimed that the film did not portray the relationship between the actress and the rapper truthfully.
The film has scenes which suggest that Tupac and Smith had a very loving relationship, friendship-wise and romantically. One scene in the movie shows Tupac expressing his love for Jada through a poem.
In a recent videotaped interview with Atlanta radio station V- 103 on “The Ryan Cameron Morning Show With Wanda Smith,” Smith began to tear up as she explained why she believed the Tupac film was a “disservice” to the rapper’s legacy.
“What you’re seeing in regards to my relationship with Tupac is not true. My relationship with ‘Pac would have shown people what he truly was,” the actress said. “It’s one thing to see Pac’s persona, publicly, and who he was personally.”
Smith went on to explain that she felt as though the production of the movie was done disrespectfully to his legacy, and the producers should have reached out to her, even though recent reports say she gave her blessings for a successful movie to a few cast members.
“I felt like the movie was [exploitative] of me and ‘Pac, how they used our relationship to sell a movie. And I just felt like it was tomb raiding in regards to ‘Pac,” she said. “If you are really saying you are honoring a man’s legacy, then honor his legacy. And if you don’t have all of the story, fall back until you do.”
The actress also spoke on the matter that we as Black people have to protect the people we say are important to us.
Since Smith’s claim, the producer of the film, LT Hutton, responded to her complaints about the movie’s portrayal of the actress and Tupac.
LT Hutton told gossip blog The Jasmine Brand, “First off, she had four scenes. There’s no way that they could sell a movie off that.”
Hutton also shared a picture of Demetrius Shipp Jr., the actor who portrayed Tupac, with Jada Pinkett Smith on set, which refutes her claims of not being involved in the movie.
