I try to steer away from drama on here but this subject in particular has made the Selena fan base explode in anger.
It has been reported that Selena’s father, Abraham Quintanilla is suing Chris Perez and blocking production of the mini series that he is attempting to produce about their relationship.
The immediate reaction is, “What a horrible/selfish/awful thing to do!” and I get it. I’m with you!
Over the years, I’ve always figured they had a decent relationship. Maybe they’ve just tolerated each other all these years and attempted to keep the peace for the sake of Selena.
Back in 1995, Chris Perez signed away his “rights” to Selena’s image, likeness, voice and well, pretty much anything pertaining to her. Simply, he can’t make money off her. Chris still gets a cut of her royalties but cannot create the product for what I interpret. He signed away this two months after her passing. According to an article at Texas Monthly, Chris didn’t have much interest in her estate in that way. As stated :
“….Before the trial, he said that he wanted to continue playing guitar, focusing on rock music. He also answered critics who questioned the handling of the estate, saying, “I didn’t have a lawyer just like Selena didn’t have a lawyer. We didn’t need a lawyer because this is family. And why should I worry about losing something? I have already lost what I always wanted. I would trade everything I had if I could have her back.”
Legally, Mr. Quintanilla does have a case.
Does this make this all okay? Of course not. And obviously it doesn’t make him look good. He already has a bit of a bad reputation among fans. But there is a contract that needs to be honoured. Chris obviously wasn’t looking that far ahead to foresee this sort of situation. He never seemed to be interested in the business side of things.
I honestly do not believe Mr. Quintanilla is this horrible money grabbing father that people paint him to be. If he was as greedy as people make him out to be, he would of done a lot more with the Selena brand in the last 21 years as he pretty much has full reign over it. But instead, he’s been quite choosey on releases and it’s difficult to find any official “Selena” products.
I think Abraham has good intentions on protecting her image and legacy which is why I can *sort of* see this from his perspective. I have no doubt that he loves her and wants to do what’s best for her legacy. The Quintanillas worked incredibly hard to get where they are. He was burned in the past shortly after her passing with bootleg tshirts, unauthorized books and movies that were being attempted to be made.
Maybe he’s scared of Chris revealing a particular side of her ? I mean, Selena has always been portrayed as a “saint”. I doubt Selena has much or any real scandal and Chris has always been so graceful about what he shares about their personal lives.
There are some unanswered questions like how did Chris’s book “To Selena with Love” book get published at all and just a week or two ago, her father seemed okay with the idea of the book turning into a tv mini series. Why the sudden change of heart?
I suppose we don’t know the full story.
This is all pure speculation on my end. I’m not a lawyer. Maybe I’m just like Selena and try to see the best in people and give them the benefit of the doubt.
I do hope they reach an agreement outside of court. The family has been through enough and it would be a shame to bring your son in law to court.
Now that Chris seems to be in a better headspace than he was back 21 years ago, perhaps now is a good time to look at renegotiating with Mr. Quintanilla if that’s possible. As fans, we want to hear Chris’s stories too and it would be unfortunate the only reason he can’t is because of money and contracts. I hope they get it worked out because I’m sure all of us want to see the mini series in the future 🙂
thoughts for the more than casual Selena fan. 