Ol' Dirty Bastard documentary announced
A&E Network has greenlighted the first-ever official feature documentary on the late Wu-Tang Clan member Ol’ Dirty Bastard, with the full backing of ODB’s estate, The Hollywood Reporter reports.
Its working title is Biography: Ol’ Dirty Bastard, and it will be co-directed by Sam Pollard (MLK/FBI, Black Art: In the Absence of Light) and his son Jason Pollard (Get Me Roger Stone, Bitchin’: The Sound and Fury of Rick James). It was produced by Pulse Films, with Four Screens and the ODB estate. According to Hollywood Reporter, the directors gained exclusive rights to a never-before-seen personal archive shot by ODB’s wife, Icelene Jones, as as well as access to the rapper’s closest friends and family. More from the article:
The documentary will center on ODB’s solo career, from his first album release in 1995 until his untimely passing from a drug overdose in 2004. Charting his meteoric rise and heartbreaking fall, the film will look to interweave this modern narrative with looks back at his trauma-filled childhood to examine how it influenced the man and artist he would become. A celebration of his artistry and legacy, the documentary is billed as an “unflinching look” at the complexities of his life including addiction, adultery, fame, mental illness, sudden wealth, race and criminal justice and will attempt to ask the question of just how complicit the media and music industry were in hastening his demise.
“I am thrilled to tell the full story of my husband. With this documentary the world will learn about the son, the husband, the father and the artist,” said Jones. “I’m proud of the team that we built, including Pulse, my producing partners Nicole Beckett and Messiah Jacobs at Four Screens, and our directing team, the Pollards.”
Read more here.
