Netflix's new 50 Cent-produced Diddy docuseries, Sean Combs: The Reckoning, continues to make waves. The doc features interviews with various former members of the mogul's inner circle, along with some of his alleged victims. It also featured never-before-seen footage of him speaking with his lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, shortly before his arrest.
Of course, this footage led to a great deal of speculation about how it was obtained. It was rumored to be thanks to a “fee dispute or contract issue,” but now, Diddy's personal videographer Michael Oberlies has set the record straight. According to him, it all started when he went out of town.
“For over two years, we have been working on a project profiling Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs,” he told Rolling Stone. “The footage in question was not released by me or anyone authorized to handle Sean Combs’ materials; it was by a third party who covered for me for three days while I was out of state. This incident had nothing to do with any fee dispute or contract issue. The actions of the parties involved reflect the lack of integrity every storyteller should uphold. Taking footage intended for our project to advance a narrative that was not our own is both unethical and unacceptable.”
What Did Diddy Say About Sean Combs: The Reckoning?
Following the release of the doc, Diddy's team issued a statement, making their disapproval apparent.
“Netflix’s so-called ‘documentary’ is a shameful hit piece," it read in part. "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.”
Netflix later denied these allegations in a statement of its own, insisting the footage was obtained legally.
