Back in September 2016, JAY Z signed a multi-year television and film deal with film studio The Weinstein Company, with the aim of generating movies as well as both scripted and unscripted (read: reality programming) television shows.
Following the announcement, Shawn revealed that through the deal he would release three projects: one for NBC about former Special Operations Direct Action Sniper in the 3rd Ranger Battalion for the U.S. Military Nicholas Irving (the first African American to serve in that position), the long-in-the works biopic on Richard Pryor, Is It Something I Said?, and a a six-part docu-series for Spike TV on the life of Kalief Browder, a New York high school student who — after being accused stealing a backpack in 2010 — was sent to Rikers Island for three years without a trial or due process (after being charged with second degree robbery, Browder was unable to make his $10,000 bail and subsequently sent to Rikers).
A trailer for the Spike series, TIME: The Kalief Browder Story, has now been released. An official selection for the 2017 Sundance film festival, the series aims to tell the tale of a young Black teenager who was imprisoned without conviction for years, essentially wrecking his psyche; Browder was held in solitary confinement or administrative segregation, and after up to six attempts while locked up, shortly after being released he committed suicide in 2015.
Airing in March, the trailer can be seen below.
