Idol producers say parts of Fantasia's biopic are false
Producers for the show say they never suggested Barino should quit.
One of the producers of American Idol, Ken Warwick, is speaking out about Idol winner Fantasia.
Warwick claims a scene in the opening of the biopic "The Fantasia Barrino Story: Life Is Not A Fairytale" is indeed a figment of the singer's imagination. The scene depicts Fantasia entering her dressing room backstage after performing "Chain of Fools" during a performance of the show and meeting with the fictional producer "Ed" and a woman named Barbara, a public relations person.
"Ed" asks Barrino if she is aware of the reports on the Internet and the criticisms swirling around the single mother and high-school dropout. Barbara then backs him up by saying they had received many calls and e-mails on the issue and they would understand if Barrino wanted to quit the show.
"I'm the executive producer," Warwick said in a statement in The New York Post. "Nigel Lythgoe is the other executive producer, and nobody--to my knowledge--would have said anything like that to her."
Mr. Warwick also said they knew about the singer's daughter, Zion, from the beginning and would have never asked her to leave, especially since she was one of the strongest contenders from the start.
"The Fantasia Barrino Story: Life Is Not A Fairytale" will air on the Lifetime channel Aug. 19.
