Back in January, Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering’s then-untitled documentary examining the sexual abuse allegations against hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons was hit with a potentially fatal blow: Oprah Winfrey, who was producing the doc as part of her content deal with Apple TV+, withdrew her support of the film, citing concerns with “inconsistencies” in the story told by Drew Dixon—the music executive whose allegations are at the center of the doc, now titled On The Record. (Winfrey also told the New York Times that Simmons “did reach out multiple times and attempted to pressure” her into withdrawing her support of the film, though she maintains this ultimately had nothing to do with her decision.)
Shortly after, On The Record found a home at HBO’s forthcoming streaming platform, HBO Max. This week—five months after the documentary and its contents were called into question by one of the most powerful women in the world—HBO Max has released the first trailer for the film, which sheds light on the stories of Dixon and fellow accusers Sil Lai Abrams and Sheri Sher:
Here’s the official synopsis for On The Record, which premiers May 27 on HBO Max:
Every woman’s story deserves to be heard.
On The Record presents the powerful and haunting story of music executive Drew Dixon as she grapples with her decision to become one of the first women of color, in the wake of #MeToo, to come forward and publicly name hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons of sexual assault. The documentary chronicles not only Dixon’s story but that of several other accusers – Sil Lai Abrams and Sheri Sher.