US X Factor star's Houston 'fracas' (From Bridgwater Mercury)

US X Factor star's Houston 'fracas'

3:08pm Wednesday 15th February 2012 in National Entertainment News © Press Association 2011

A US X Factor star has claimed she had an altercation with Whitney Houston just hours before the singer's death.

Stacy Francis, a finalist on the show, said the star's mood suddenly changed after she began chatting to Whitney's on-off toyboy boyfriend, Ray J, in a nightclub at a pre-Grammy awards party.

The X Factor singer told the Daily Mirror: "She was out of control. She put her hand in my face. She was screaming at me... She just went crazy - like Jekyll and Hyde.

"I turned to look at her and she pushed my forehead and turned my face away. I grabbed her hand and said, 'Please don't do this. You're everything to me. You're my idol, you're a legend.'"

The singer claimed Whitney, 48, downed glasses of champagne and tequila shots before the fracas.

She also told the newspaper that the star, who was found dead in her bath at the Beverly Hilton hotel, had told her she was seriously considering an offer from Simon Cowell to be a judge on the US X Factor.

Meanwhile, Whitney's death will reportedly not affect the development of the Waiting To Exhale sequel.

According to Elizabeth Gabler, president of Fox 2000 Pictures, the follow-up to the 1995 film is still happening. She told Vulture: "I don't think she would want it to [be cancelled]. It's almost in her honour that we think to soldier on."

Whitney's final film, Sparkle, is set for a summer release. In the remake of the 1976 movie of the same name, The Bodyguard actress stars as mother of three sisters in a musical group.

It has also emerged that fans will be able to watch the funeral on the internet. Whitney's publicist, Kristen Foster, said The Associated Press would be allowed a camera at the ceremony and it will stream the service on http://livestream.com/aplive.