A documentary about Prince has been abruptly shelved by Netflix, with no chance of it ever seeing the light of day, after pushback from the legendary musician’s estate.
The nine-hour project had been in development for over five years by Oscar-winning director Ezra Edelman, and sought to give an intimate look into Prince’s life. However, the film reportedly contained allegations of physical and emotional abuse against the musician, which his estate did not agree to, forcing Netflix to pull the plug.
According to RadarOnline, the documentary contained interviews with some of Prince’s exes, one of which was Jill Jones who claims he punched her in the face “over and over” one night in 1984.
Another, Susannah Melvoin, alleged that after she moved in with Prince, he emotionally manipulated her, told her not to leave the house, and monitored her calls.
The film also included details about Prince’s own abusive childhood and the complicated relationship he had with his young wife Mayte Garcia after they lost their son six days after birth.
Edelman attempted to keep the project alive by making some changes as demanded by the estate, but ultimately stood his ground leading to the documentary’s cancellation.
“The dumping of this documentary after years of work has started a lot of talk. Prince’s estate only want to present a clean-cut image of him,” a source told RadarOnline.
The estate’s lawyer, L. Londell McMillan, offered further insight into the project’s demise, saying: “(Prince) had human flaws, as we all do, but he was a great man, greatest artist ever, philanthropist, innovator, and he helped many people, including me. People can say what they want but won’t use his platform to do it.”
While this particular documentary has been scrapped, Prince’s estate has agreed to a new deal with Netflix to produce a different film on the musician and his legacy, which will reportedly avoid addressing any abuse allegations.
“The Prince Estate and Netflix have come to a mutual agreement that will allow the estate to develop and produce a new documentary featuring exclusive content from Prince’s archive,” the estate said in a statement released on social media. “As a result, the Netflix documentary will not be released.”
