Prince documentary on Netflix officially scrapped as estate plots new project with streaming service

A controversial planned Prince documentary for Netflix has been officially scrapped.

Production of the six-part Prince series was originally greenlit in 2018, but subsequently stalled over disagreements between the Prince estate and the documentary’s director Ezra Edelman, who also directed O.J.: Made in America, over what they described as “dramatic” factual inaccuracies and “sensationalized” versions of events in his life. 

According to Variety, the late star’s estate have now axed the nine-hour project but secured a new agreement with the streaming giant to “develop and produce a new documentary featuring exclusive content from Prince’s archive”.

The Prince estate resolved the six-year-long legal battle over Prince’s assets in August 2022. Earlier today (7th February), a post on Prince’s official X/Twitter account read: “The Vault Has Been Freed.”

Last September, The New York Times reported that Edelman’s documentary featured accusations of physical and emotional abuse from Prince’s ex-girlfriends. According to the Independent, the Prince Estate were reportedly unhappy with the portrayal of Prince that emerged in Edelman’s film.

Last year, Prince was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame, with his sister, Sharon Nelson, attending the ceremony to accept the award honouring him.