'Sparkle': Whitney Houston's swan song

When the musical drama "Sparkle" opens Aug. 17, the late Whitney Houston will join the spectral cast of performers whose final film roles came after their deaths. Whether with young actors like James Dean and Heath Ledger or middle-aged ones like Houston or Bernie Mac, the death of a movie's star between production and premiere can create a mystique -- although, given that the vast majority of people in the century-plus canon of movies we see on TV, video and elsewhere are, in fact, dead, that mystique doesn't usually last long.

"It's a short-term phenomenon," says Columbia University film scholar David Sterritt, chair of the National Society of Film Critics and professor emeritus of theater and film at Long Island University. "When an elderly star dies, people get a little sentimental, and there may be an uptick in the Netflix requests. And when somebody young dies, there's a lot of mourning and grief, and people make a legend out of the person instantly, whether it's deserved or not. But," he notes, "the grief goes away, and new young stars come along, and life goes on."

Whether Houston will reach these sanctified ranks, it's too soon to tell. But as this list of some of the most well-known posthumous stars demonstrates, we most often just mourn and move on.

Jordin Sparks on making 'Sparkle' with Whitney Houston

I was just a bundle of emotions. Nervous, watching me. And I was an emotional wreck because of Whitney.

It was fun. And it was how Carmen, Tika and I bonded during rehearsals. We'd shoot scenes . . . getting into the acting, getting really deep, and I was out of my comfort zone. Everybody else passed with flying colors. Then, we did the music scenes, and I was like -- OK, I got this. I know this like the back of my hand. But the others were a little outside their comfort zone. It was funny to see it switch.

I know . . .

At the table read -- when we all got together to read the script -- Whitney walked in, and you could literally see everybody sit up a little straighter. I was like, ohmigosh -- she's here. I mean, it's Whitney Houston. She's . . . The Voice. But she was great. She showed me it doesn't matter how big you get, how many records you sell -- you're never too big to say hi. Or sit down and have a conversation.

Man . . . there've definitely been days when I think . . . I'mmm not sure this is really what I want to do. Of course -- it's my absolute dream. I'm so incredibly grateful.

There are times when I think, "Gee, things are going so well," but you never know when something's gonna knock you right back down. I know there are people out there waiting for me to mess up. And I'm sure eventually . . . I will. It happens to everybody. I think it's how you react to those situations and climb out that matters. One thing I learned from Whitney -- she was not ashamed. She seemed to have this wisdom behind her eyes. It was like, 'Yeah, I went through the ringer, but I'm here now and we're moving on. . . . We shouldn't be ashamed of things, because that's what makes us who we are.' She didn't say it -- that's just the presence she exuded. It's something that really struck me.