Bet You Didn’t Know: Secrets Behind The Making Of “Selena”

Her Death and then the Movie

Selena passed away in March of 1995, and in March 21, 1997, four days shy of the two year anniversary of her death, the movie was released. And it was actually pushed back. The movie was supposed to come out in 1996. They announced in August, the same year of her death that Selena was going to come out in the fall of 1996. It was pushed back several times several time afterward and finally opened in 1997. So we can assume that conversations about the biopic started very soon after her death. Abraham Quintanilla, Selena’s father, said in response to questions that perhaps he was exploiting his daughter’s death to make money, that since the movie was going to be made, it was important that he be involved in the project. Furthermore, he referenced Selena’s own entrepreneurial spirit and said “If people criticize me for making money on Selena, I don’t know about it. And if they do, I don’t care. I don’t care what other people think. I never have.”