Hey guys, it’s Sussan Mourad with Clevver News, and it was just announced that Christina
Milian will be replacing Naya Rivera in the Starz television series Step Up, but fans
are expressing their outrage upon hearing the news.
Last year’s tragic passing of Naya Rivera still weighs heavy on the hearts of millions
as it’s still unfathomable to believe that her compassion, humor and raw talents could
be replaced.
Just before Naya’s sudden death back in July of last year, when she accidentally drowned
while out boating with her son Josey, Naya was in the midst of reprising her role of
Collette Jones for the upcoming third season of the Starz TV series Step Up, previously
known as Step Up: High Water.
The series, which was inspired by the original film starring Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan,
centers around the students of High Water Performing Art School in Atlanta.
Naya’s character Collette starred alongside Ne-Yo, who plays Collette’s love interest
and business partner Sage Odom, the founder of the school.
But as the third season continues production, there has been much speculation as to how
Naya’s role will be either reprised or remembered… until now.
On Monday, Starz confirmed that Grammy-nominated singer and actress Christina Milian will be
replacing Naya as Collette in the upcoming third season of the YouTube-turned-Starz series.
The decision to recast Collette wasn’t an overnight decision, as the Lionsgate TV production
reportedly QUOTE “considered all their options when it came to ways with which the series
could move forward following Rivera's tragic death,” however, they DID consult with Naya’s
family prior to moving forward, this according to the New York Post.
Christina issued a statement, saying QUOTE, “I am so excited to join the Step Up family.
I know I have massive shoes to fill.
Naya was incredible.
I hope to honor Naya, her family, friends and fans with a great performance.”
Neyo also issued a statement at the time of the news being made public, saying QUOTE,
“There is no replacing Naya.
Let’s get that straight.
Her spirit lives on in our memories and every part of what this show is and will be.”
He went on to praise Christina, adding that she has “big shoes to fill and she knows
it,” which “speaks to her poise and respect as a person and an artist.
I’m more than certain of her ability to bring an energy and light to this character
that Naya’s fans as well as the rest of the world will love.
We’ve welcomed Christina with absolute open arms and have rallied around her with love
and support.
I’m excited and can’t wait for the world to see this!”
Others, including the series creator and executive producer Holly Sorensen, also spoke out on
Monday, saying QUOTE, “Naya's death was a terrible loss to our world that we will,
frankly, never stop mourning.
It was almost impossible to consider there could be someone so graceful and loving who
could both help us honor our loss, while also bringing a deep reservoir of talent to our
show, in so many areas.”
She concluded her statement by saying, “Christina is an exceptional human and a dazzling performer
and we are so happy she has joined our family.”
Despite the Step Up cast welcoming Christina to the family with open arms, many fans, on
the other hand, were furious upon hearing the news, to which “Naya” immediately
began trending on Twitter.
Some fans had mixed reactions to the news and weren’t exactly ready to accept the
fact that someone would be replacing Naya on the show, like this user who tweeted, “I
heard about the recast.
I felt overwhelmed by it.
I'm happy that the show is moving forward but I'm devastated knowing that they're moving
forward without her.
We love you naya.
She will always be my Collette Jones.
But I'm wishing the show the best of luck.”
Others weren’t as forgiving and even urged fans of the show to get the #StepUpYouMessedUp
to go viral.
One user tweeted, “They really said ‘There is no replacing Naya’ then replaced her.”
This fan addressed many valid points, including the network’s audacity to reveal the news
on the same day as the seven-month anniversary of Naya’s passing.
They said QUOTE, “Lot of things that don’t sit right w/ me.
First the fact that they are replacing her while at the same time saying she’s irreplaceable,
second the fact that they posted it on the 7th months, the fact that they said Naya fans
would ‘love it’ it all just feels very wrong.”
The same person also went on to mention Christina, adding, “They’re setting Christina up
bc she hasn’t done anything but now people are gonna compare her to Naya who they literally
just said is irreplaceable.
It makes me angry like, you couldn’t have written her off?”
Many fans are even going as far to vow to refuse to watch the third season, as this
user said, “Wait til they find out we only watched Step Up for Naya.”
Neither Neyo, Christina or Starz have responded to the backlash, however, production for season
3 will begin filming this month in Atlanta with Starz set to marathon the first two seasons
starting March 5.
Should any other updates be made regarding the new casting, we’ll do our best to keep
you guys posted.
And to see why fans are blaming Justin Timberlake for the majority of Britney Spears’ downfall,
click right over here for a full Clevver rundown.
Then be sure to let me know your thoughts on all this and what you think of how Starz
handled the situation down here in the comments.
I’m your host Sussan Mourad, you can find me on Instagram @Sussan_Mourad, bye guys!