Lifetime Biopic Actors vs. the Real Life Stars They've Portrayed on TV

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Whitney Houston

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Aaliyah

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

The Brittany Murphy story

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

The Gabby Douglas Story

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Saved by the Bell

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

lifetime7

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Ring of Fire

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

House of Versace

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Bonnie and Clyde

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Betty and Coretta

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Liz & Dick

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

William & Kate

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Magic Beyond Words: The JK Rowling Story

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

George O'Keeffe

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

Coco Chanel

[Photos: Lifetime, Getty]

With Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B making its debut this Saturday, we're most struck by the resemblance between the film's star Alexandra Shipp and the late R&B singer. The young actress has Aaliyah's style down, especially when she serves the singer's tomboy-ish, hip-hop swagger. And then at other times, we're reminded that this is a Lifetime film and there's really no replicating Aaliyah. Overall Shipp does a better job of bringing the singer's story to life on the small screen than other performers who came before her. Amanda Fuller was too distracted by a poor choice of wigs in The Brittany Murphy Story to accurately portray the troubled actress. When it came to Liz & Dick, there was no getting past that Lindsay Lohan was somehow just playing an older version of herself. And then there was Jewel as June Cash Carter in Ring of Fire. An inspired choice until you remember that Reese Witherspoon won an Oscar for portraying the same person on the big screen eight years earlier. Check out the gallery above to see how Lifetime's actors compare to the real life subjects they portray on the small screen.

See Shipp in action as Aaliyah in a clip from the upcoming film.

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[Photos: Lifetime/Getty]