A documentary film about the rise and fall of Ol’ Dirty Bastard is coming to A&E in 2023.
The cable network announced in a recent press release the two-hour film tentatively titled Biography: Ol’ Dirty Bastard is the first official doc about the late Wu-Tang Clan founding member.
The rapper, real name Russell Tyrone Jones, died from a drug overdose in 2004.
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The film is executive produced by ODB’s wife Icelene Jones, who also shot the scenes from the family’s personal archive.
“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,” Jones said in a statement.”
Sam Pollard (MLK/FBI, Black Art: In The Absence of Light) co-directs the film alongside his son Jason Pollard (Get Me Roger Stone, Bitchin’ The Sound and Fury of Rick James).
Biography: Ol’ Dirty Bastard is produced by Pulse Films and Four Screens for A&E Network. Sam Bridger and Diene Pettrle serve as executive producers and Louis Mole serves as producer for Pulse Films. Messiah Jacobs, Nicole Beckett alongside Jones are executive producers representing Four Screens and the Ol’ Dirty Bastard Estate. Elaine Frontain Bryant and Brad Abramson serve as executive producers for A&E Network.
“Biography: Ol’ Dirty Bastard will present viewers with the untold story of the man and the musician who made an immense cultural impact across just a few short years,” Elaine Frontain Bryant, Executive Vice President and Head of Programming for A&E, said in a statement.
Here’s the official description of the film: “Charting his meteoric rise and heart-breaking fall, the film will 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 an unflinching look at the complexities of his life including addiction, adultery, fame, mental illness, sudden wealth, race and criminal justice, and will ask the question of just how complicit the media and music industry were in hastening his demise.”
Biography: Ol’ Dirty Bastard will premiere on A&E in 2023.
