Photo by: Rich Graessle/Stringer
Director Spike Lee and former 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick have teamed up to work on a multi-part documentary centering Kaepernick using “never-before-seen” material to “tell his story from his perspective.”
The project is in line with Kaepernick’s overall first-look deal with ESPN, which he inked in July 2020. After the contract was announced, the award-winning director was brought on board.
“Kaepernick, who has never given a full, first-person account of his journey, is collaborating closely with Lee who plans to use extensive new interviews and a vast never-before-seen archive,” according to a press release.
Jemele Hill, a current contributing writer for The Atlantic, will serve as a producer on the ESPN Films project.
Kaepernick recently featured in and executive produced the Netflix series Colin in Black & White, which debuted in October.
The series, which stars Jaden Michael as a young Kaepernick, follows the athlete’s early years, concentrating on how he overcame hurdles of race, culture and class as a Black youngster adopted into a white home.
Kaepernick rose to popularity in the football world as the quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers.
He was a six-year NFL veteran who led the team to two title games, including Super Bowl XLVII. To protest police brutality and institutional racism in America, Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem in 2016.
After that season, Kaepernick became a free agent, and no other NFL team wanted to sign him. The former athlete filed a grievance with the NFL in November 2017, alleging that the league was colluding to keep him out of the league.
He struck a settlement with the NFL in February 2019 and is now a free agent.
Lee, who won an Oscar for best-adapted screenplay for BlacKkKlansman in 2019, most recently directed Netflix’s Da 5 Bloods. Other documentaries he’s worked on include 4 Little Girls from 1997 and the HBO series NYC Epicenters: 9/11 – 202112.
The documentary will be executive produced by ESPN Films in collaboration with 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks.
This pairing seems like magic! Ain’t that the truth Ruth?
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