With just hours remaining before the release of Sean Combs: The Reckoning on Netflix, Sean “Diddy” Combs has enlisted his legal team in an effort to prevent the streaming service from airing the four-part documentary series.
The series, produced by his longtime rival Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, is said to provide a comprehensive look at Combs’ life. It promises a ‘staggering examination of the media mogul, music legend, and convicted offender’, featuring never-before-seen footage of Combs and his inner circle.
Diddy has criticized the series as a ‘shameful hit piece’ and accused Netflix of using unauthorized footage to complete the project.
Through a spokesperson, the disgraced music mogul, currently serving a four-year prison sentence for charges related to prostitution, asserted that the footage of ‘private moments, pre-indictment material from an unfinished project, and conversations involving legal strategy’ was obtained improperly.
The spokesperson’s statement reads, “Today’s GMA teaser confirms that Netflix relied on stolen footage that was never authorized for release. As Netflix and CEO Ted Sarandos know, Mr. Combs has been amassing footage since he was 19 to tell his own story, in his own way. It is fundamentally unfair, and illegal, for Netflix to misappropriate that work.”
“None of this was obtained from Sean Combs or his team, and its inclusion raises very serious questions about how this material was accessed and why Netflix chose to use it,” the spokesperson continued.
In response, Diddy’s legal team has issued a cease and desist order to Netflix in an attempt to prevent the release scheduled for later today.
Despite Diddy’s allegations, Jackson and director Alexandria Stapleton informed The Hollywood Reporter that the footage was acquired legally, though they did not disclose the exact method or source of acquisition.
Diddy also criticized Netflix for allowing his former adversary 50 Cent to produce the documentary, arguing that it was driven by a ‘personal vendetta’ against him.
The rivalry between the two has persisted for over twenty years, with 50 Cent previously releasing a diss track against Diddy in 2006. However, 50 Cent denies any personal motive behind his involvement in the documentary.
“It’s not personal,” he said. “If I didn’t say anything,” he pointed out, the public might assume “hip-hop is fine with his behaviors. There’s no one else being vocal.”
In a statement about the series, Stapleton explained her intentions for the project, stating it serves as ‘a mirror [reflecting us] as the public, and what we are saying when we put our celebrities on such a high pedestal. I hope [this documentary] is a wake-up call for how we idolize people, and to understand that everybody is a human being.’
The documentary follows a turbulent period for Diddy, who was convicted earlier this year on two charges of transportation to engage in prostitution, involving flying his girlfriend and male sex workers across the country for drug-fueled encounters.
He faced charges of sex trafficking and racketeering as well, but was acquitted of these, avoiding a potential life sentence.
Sean Combs: The Reckoning is set to premiere on Netflix on December 2.