Red Arrow Studios International has picked up the international distribution rights to Controlling Britney Spears, a feature length documentary containing new allegations from insiders with intimate knowledge of the pop icon’s daily life inside the conservatorship.
The documentary is a followup to the award-winning international smash hit Framing Britney Spears and was produced in partnership by The New York Times and Left/Right. The film is directed by Samantha Stark, and Liz Day is supervising producer and reporter.
In a confidential report obtained by The Times, Ms Spears told a court investigator in 2016 that her conservatorship had become “an oppressive and controlling tool against her.” But how the conservatorship has controlled her life has never been revealed. Now, in this New York Times investigation, a portrait emerges of an intense surveillance apparatus that monitored every move she made.
Once the insiders came forward, The Times and Left/Right felt compelled to bring this reporting to the public as soon as possible.
Controlling Britney Spears premiered on FX and Hulu in the US on Friday, September 24.
Tim Gerhartz, President & Managing Director at Red Arrow Studios International, said: “We are delighted to be distributing this fascinating follow-up to one of the most talked about television events of the year, which sold widely across every continent. We are already seeing huge interest in Controlling Britney Spears from our partners globally and are look forward to bringing these new revelations to viewers around the world very soon.”
Controlling Britney Spears joins Red Arrow’s The Weekly: Special Edition collection of premium standalone documentaries, which are driven by the unparalleled journalism and insight of The New York Times. Branded as ‘The New York Times Presents’ in the US, the collection is produced for FX and Hulu, and executive produced by Jason Stallman, Sam Dolnick, Stephanie Preiss from The New York Times, and Ken Druckerman, Banks Tarver and Mary Robertson from Left/Right.
Red Arrow Studios International also holds international distribution rights to sister show The Weekly (30 x 27’), which won four news & documentary Emmy awards in 2020.