Netflix scrapped its planned Prince documentary after a disagreement with his estate, but a new project with unseen footage is in development.
Prince’s highly anticipated Netflix documentary has been shelved after a dispute between the streaming giant and the late musician’s estate, but a new project is now in the works.
The decision, announced Thursday in a joint statement from Netflix and The Prince Estate, means that director Ezra Edelman’s nine-hour film will never see the light of day.
“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 statement read. “As a result, the Netflix documentary will not be released.”
The fallout between the estate and Netflix was first reported by The New York Times in September when sources revealed that Prince’s estate was trying to prevent the documentary from moving forward.
The estate’s representatives claimed the film misrepresented the legendary musician, best known for Purple Rain, When Doves Cry, and Raspberry Beret.
Edelman, the filmmaker behind the Oscar-winning O.J.: Made in America, has not publicly commented on the decision. While fans may be disappointed by the cancellation, the estate didn’t let the moment pass without a bit of celebration.
A montage of Prince photographs set to his 1982 ballad Free appeared on the estate’s Instagram, accompanied by the caption, “The Vault Has Been Freed. #FREE.”
Prince’s estate is split between Primary Wave Music, which acquired shares from three of his heirs in 2021, and Prince Legacy, a company overseen by two managers and three of his relatives.
Since his passing in 2016 from an accidental fentanyl overdose at age 57, his vast archive—often referred to as “The Vault”—has been the subject of much intrigue, with fans eager to see and hear the unreleased material he left behind.
Now, with the estate taking control of the narrative, it remains to be seen what direction the new documentary will take.
