Prince’s Estate Refuses To Approve 9-Hour Netflix Documentary, Claims Project’s Lengthy Duration Violates Original Agreement
PPrince’s Estate Refuses To Approve 9-Hour Netflix Documentary, Claims Project’s Lengthy Duration Violates Original Agreement
Estate executors for music icon Prince are at a standstill with Netflix.
Reports state that the legal professionals are refusing to approve a documentary about the singer’s life made in collaboration with the streaming giant due to disagreements about the length of the project.
As we previously covered, the Prince estate inked a deal with Netflix back in 2018 and agreed that the movie would total around 6 hours of watch time. After multiple changes to production throughout the years, including the exit of the original director Ava DuVernary however, it seems the current director Ezra Edelman couldn’t tell the story in the allotted time frame. Reports state that the filmmaker’s final edits totaled around 9 hours long, which Prince’s estate claims violates their initial agreement.
Reportedly, Netflix has insisted that “a compromise can still be worked out,” though other sources claim that Ezra Edelman is “not interested in a truncated version” of the movie. Along with discrepancies about duration, the singer’s estate has also reportedly taken issue with parts of the movie they believe to be inaccuracies.
As you may recall Prince, a 7x Grammy Award winner who passed away from an accidental fentanyl overdose in 2016 at the age of 57, was notoriously private, but always put maximum effort into his shows. A source close to the project alleges that both sides of his estate, which, as of 2022, consists of his family and those who manage the artist’s rights, have attempted to uphold the strength of his legacy and have been “incredibly nitpicky” about the film, adding:
“You never saw Prince release anything subpar. Everything was carefully curated and fine-tuned. The estate still holds that high standard,”
The source additionally says the current version of the film “does not accurately portray the legendary Prince.” Despite the current obstacle, they also claim that the entertainer’s estate:
“does, in fact, want to see the documentary released…when it is ready, respectfully — so that the world can celebrate his extraordinary life and work.”
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[VIA]