Rashad Haughton is the older brother of the late R&B artist Aaliyah. Handsome brother and beautiful sister look a great deal alike and have similar voices. Raised together in Detroit, the two were very close. Rashad and the family were with Aaliyah in Melbourne, Australia during the filming of her current release Queen of the Damned and, after her death, the film's director Michael Rymer asked Rashad to help finish his sister's work on the film by "looping" or digitally augmenting her dialogue. None of her dialogue was replaced. Rymer says, "Underneath, you'll hear a whispered version (of her dialogue). It gives a little clarity to the consonants and gives a supernatural quality. The primary reason for doing it was to keep Aaliyah's performance because I was very happy with that. She gave it a grace and regal charm."

When we spoke with Rashad briefly before the opening of Queen in Los Angeles, we found him to be extremely dignified, soft-spoken and totally devoted to preserving his sister's memory. He spoke of Aaliyah's interest in Egyptology and fascination with vampires from an early age. Her role was a dream part and he's determined to see that the dream lives.

Why do you think your sister was so interested in playing such an evil character?

Rashad: I guess because, in her everyday life, she was such a sweet girl, to explore the other sides of your personality would be fun. What would it be like to be this person or that? Exploring places you've never been before, that was something she definitely did in this role.