In regards to leaked footage of a holographic Whitney Houston performing on The Voice, the Internet has done what it’s meant to do: ridicule. “It’s not right and it’s not okay” has been coined, as it needed to be. Whitty Hutton has been invoked. And the Houston estate has pulled the plug.
“Holograms are new technology that take time to perfect, and we believe with artists of this iconic caliber, it must be perfect,” Pat Houston said yesterday. “Whitney’s legacy and her devoted fans deserve perfection. After closely viewing the performance, we decided the hologram was not ready to air.”
The Voice premiere of the long-hyped holoHouston was meant to raise the curtain on a new era of entertainment, when living human performers are no longer needed to distract the masses. But make no mistake: That era is still coming, or at least a lot of people are still working to make it so. 3D recreations of Selena and Notorious B.I.G. are reportedly on their way. The billionaire behind of one of the more ambitious hologram companies has talked about reforming the Beatles and even resurrecting Jesus again. (Caveat: “Hologram” is a technically inaccurate term, but like the word “hoverboard,” it’s what we’re calling these things.)