A documentary on Oprah Winfrey is not coming to Apple TV+. Why, you may ask? Nicely, Winfrey, herself, purchased again the rights to it, PageSix reports. Allegedly, Winfrey and filmmaker Kevin Macdonald clashed on the ultimate product, with the latter not making requested edits.
A spokesperson for Winfrey put issues a bit nicer: “Because the Apple TV+ deal was coming to an finish, Ms. Winfrey purchased again the rights to her docu-series and has since determined to place the doc on maintain. Ms. Winfrey believes Lisa Erspamer and Kevin MacDonald are extremely gifted filmmakers and is grateful for the time and power they put into the challenge.” Erspamer previously worked with Winfrey for a very long time at OWN however was let go in 2012.
Winfrey was initially very involved in Apple TV+, even talking at its launch. She signed a multi-year deal with the platform, launching exhibits corresponding to The Oprah Dialog, however the settlement resulted in 2022. It is unclear how a lot Winfrey, a billionaire, needed to spend to get the rights again, with some sources saying it was within the tens of millions and others claiming simply six figures.