Amy Winehouse’s dad defends Marisa Abela playing her in biopic following backlash

Amy Winehouse’s father has spoken out in defence of actress Marisa Abela as she plays the late singer in an upcoming biopic, directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson.

Fans have been in an uproar since pictures of Abela, 26, surfaced last week of her filming scenes as Amy, complete with her famous beehive hairstyle, in London, as they believe she looks nothing like the singer.

Mitch Winehouse has hit back at the criticism, hailing British star Abela a “great choice” for portraying his daughter on the big screen.

Mitch, 72, gave his approval of the actress as he told TMZ: “Marisa’s a great choice for the role, even if she doesn’t look exactly like Amy.”

Amy Winehouse - In pictures

He continued to point out that Eddie Marsan, the actor portraying himself in the biopic, also “doesn’t look anything like me either”.

Mitch added that there’s “plenty of Hollywood examples of actors not looking like their real-life characters” and believed there’d been “too much emphasis ... placed on looks”.

Fans have heavily disagreed with this sentiment, having voiced their opinions on the choice of the lead star as Amy on social media.

One person wrote: “Looks nothing like MY Amy. I hate these biopics that stars people who look nothing like the person.”

A second said: “They want us to believe she looks like Amy Winehouse so much and it’s not working.”

“Sam taylor johnson looks more like amy winehouse than the lead actress does,” a third chimed.

Someone else commented: “Kinda nervous for this one…she looks nothing like her. I pray it’s Amy’s original vocals…”

Another added: “On top of everything else, this actress looks NOTHING like amy winehouse?”

Amy is regarded as on the most iconic singers of her generation, having spurred a legion of global hits, including Back to Black, Rehab, and Valerie, before her untimely death aged 27 from alcohol poisoning on July 23, 2011.

The Amy Winehouse estate has shared that it is “thrilled” over the upcoming biopic, which documents Amy’s intense rise to fame and her chaotic journey on and off stage.

Skins star Jack O’Connell is set to play the role of Amy’s ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil in the film, whom she married in 2007, before eventually divorcing.

Director Taylor-Johnson, 55, said of the project: “My connection to Amy began when I left college and was hanging out in the creatively diverse London borough of Camden.

“I first saw her perform at a talent show at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in Soho and it was immediately obvious she wasn’t just talent… she was genius.”

Taylor-Johnson added: “I am fully aware of the responsibility. With my writing collaborator – Matt Greenhalgh – I will create a movie that we will all love and cherish forever. Just like we do Amy.”