Oprah backs out of sexual assault documentary bound for Apple TV+, film will not air on Ap...
Oprah Winfrey on Friday said she is no longer attached to a high-profile documentary that explores sexual misconduct in the music industry, adding that the film will not debut on Apple TV+ as planned.
Apple CEO Tim Cook and Oprah Winfrey debut Apple TV+.
Winfrey in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter said she is stepping away from the as-yet-untitled documentary citing creative differences with filmmakers Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering. The film, which was set to debut at the Sundance Film Festival in January, follows a former music executive who accused industry titan Russell Simmons of rape.
"I have decided that I will no longer be executive producer on The Untitled Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering documentary and it will not air on Apple TV+," Winfrey said. "First and foremost, I want it to be known that I unequivocally believe and support the women. Their stories deserve to be told and heard. In my opinion, there is more work to be done on the film to illuminate the full scope of what the victims endured, and it has become clear that the filmmakers and I are not aligned in that creative vision."
She goes on to suggest that Dick and Ziering are rushing the film's completion to make a premiere at Sundance.
"Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering are talented filmmakers. I have great respect for their mission but given the filmmakers' desire to premiere the film at the Sundance Film Festival before I believe it is complete, I feel it's best to step aside," Winfrey said. "I will be working with Time's Up to support the victims and those impacted by abuse and sexual harassment."
Dick was previously nominated for an Academy Award for "Twist of Faith," which sought to expose sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. The filmmaker has worked with producer Ziering on multiple films surrounding sexual assault and rape, including the Oscar-nominated "The Invisible War" (2012) and Emmy-nominated "The Hunting Ground" (2015).
Apple secured rights to the Simmons documentary in December as part of a wider deal with Winfrey.
The tech giant failed to provide a detailed overview of the upcoming film, but a description published by Sundance goes deeper and confirms Simmons accuser Drew Dixon is indeed the documentary's subject. As noted by The Hollywood Reporter, Simmons was accused of raping Dixon, who served as an executive under the Def Jam Recordings co-founder, in 1995.
Winfrey is still on tap to provide content for Apple TV+ with a pair of documentaries, one covering workplace harassment and another on mental health, and the revival of her famous book club.
Apple CEO Tim Cook and Oprah Winfrey debut Apple TV+.
Winfrey in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter said she is stepping away from the as-yet-untitled documentary citing creative differences with filmmakers Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering. The film, which was set to debut at the Sundance Film Festival in January, follows a former music executive who accused industry titan Russell Simmons of rape.
"I have decided that I will no longer be executive producer on The Untitled Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering documentary and it will not air on Apple TV+," Winfrey said. "First and foremost, I want it to be known that I unequivocally believe and support the women. Their stories deserve to be told and heard. In my opinion, there is more work to be done on the film to illuminate the full scope of what the victims endured, and it has become clear that the filmmakers and I are not aligned in that creative vision."
She goes on to suggest that Dick and Ziering are rushing the film's completion to make a premiere at Sundance.
"Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering are talented filmmakers. I have great respect for their mission but given the filmmakers' desire to premiere the film at the Sundance Film Festival before I believe it is complete, I feel it's best to step aside," Winfrey said. "I will be working with Time's Up to support the victims and those impacted by abuse and sexual harassment."
Dick was previously nominated for an Academy Award for "Twist of Faith," which sought to expose sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. The filmmaker has worked with producer Ziering on multiple films surrounding sexual assault and rape, including the Oscar-nominated "The Invisible War" (2012) and Emmy-nominated "The Hunting Ground" (2015).
Apple secured rights to the Simmons documentary in December as part of a wider deal with Winfrey.
The tech giant failed to provide a detailed overview of the upcoming film, but a description published by Sundance goes deeper and confirms Simmons accuser Drew Dixon is indeed the documentary's subject. As noted by The Hollywood Reporter, Simmons was accused of raping Dixon, who served as an executive under the Def Jam Recordings co-founder, in 1995.
Winfrey is still on tap to provide content for Apple TV+ with a pair of documentaries, one covering workplace harassment and another on mental health, and the revival of her famous book club.
Comments
they have a long way to go. And they are currently going the wrong way.
I’m indifferent to Oprah but she does attract subscribers... and seems like a smart business woman.
There's a fair amount of stuff I haven't checked out as well. Do I get $5/month worth of entertainment out of it? Easily, even if I wasn't on the free year. Is it the most exciting and amazing subscription service in the world? No, and that's absolutely not what it's going for.
Think more like PBS meets HBO. A reputation for quality and diversity with high-budget content that just keeps coming. I think they're off to a good start (way better that their first stabs at TV shows, that's for sure). The high quality and diversity appeal to me, but I guess some people have too short an attention span to "enjoy the journey" of watching a new service grow.
"I don't understand why Oprah is going after black men," he wrote. "No Harvey Weinstein, No Epstein, just Micheal jackson and Russell Simmons this ... is sad."
- 50 Cent
Mr. 50 Cent does seem to have a point. I saw one photo where Oprah seemed to be very cozy with the sexual predator Harvey Weinstein, kissing him on the cheek, and yet she is making a documentary about sexual predators and metoo, yet Harvey Weinstein, a high profile sexual predator that has been all over the news is somehow omitted from the documentary?
There seems to be a conflict of interest here, and perhaps she pulled out, due to all of the criticism she was facing.
And then there's that Apple movie with Samuel Jackson that is on hold due to sexual and violence accusations against one of the producers. If a company is going to get all involved in making "woke" content, then they had better make sure that there are no skeletons hidden in their own closet and the closet of those making that content, otherwise they might run into a few problems.
"I saw one photo where Oprah seemed to be very cozy with the sexual predator Harvey Weinstein, kissing him on the cheek, and yet she is making a documentary about sexual predators and metoo, yet Harvey Weinstein, a high profile sexual predator that has been all over the news is somehow omitted from the documentary?"
You are clearly claiming that based on "one" photo you saw that the two had a "cozy" relationship, implying she knew how about Weinstein's behavior and that because of that "cozy" relationship she is omitting him from a documentary about sexual predators.
To get to your claim you had to misrepresent what the film was actually about and draw a lot of conclusions from a single photograph. You are engaging in deception and conjecture in an attempt to smear someone. It's really vile behavior. I'm out.