SPOILER ALERT: The following reveals major plot points from the four-part Netflix documentary Sean Combs: The Reckoning.
At the peak of his career, Sean Combs was untouchable. He had a thriving career, a growing family, numerous awards, and the respect of fans around the world. Today, he is serving a four-year sentence in the minimum security prison at the Federal Correctional Institution in Fort Dix, New Jersey, after being convicted of two counts of transportation for the purpose of prostitution.
Combs’ life and a host of allegations against him are explored in the new four-part documentary. Sean Combs: The Bottom Lineexecutive producer Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and director/EP Alexandria Stapleton. The provocative title is available to stream now on Netflix.
Jackson, a critic of the music mogul, became more dedicated to trolling Combs on social media as the allegations and lawsuits began to blow up the news cycle in 2023. His legions of rabid followers live for the drama. But you should know that Sean Combs: The Bottom Line is not a “doc troll” per se. Jackson won’t randomly pop up to make fun of Combs or make stupid jokes. This is a professional documentary that, in exploring the story of the Bad Boy Records founder, may be trolling Combs for simply existing.
Deadline caught up with Jackson and Stapleton last week to discuss some of the documentary’s most significant moments. Dressed in a smart suit, the rapper and producer was more reserved when talking about Combs and the documentary than his more well-known, fun and dynamic online persona. Based on our conversation, I attribute this to Jackson wanting to be respectful to victims and accusers, known and unknown, as new lawsuits and allegations continue to emerge.
On the subject, Jackson expressed how vital it was for him to find the right person to shape a documentary that went through several iterations before becoming Sean Combs: The Bottom Line.
“It was important for me to entrust the project to Alex. I started [working on it] about five months ahead of her, bringing together people who wanted to speak and tell the truth. They knew I wouldn’t have a problem with what they said, anyway,” Jackson shared of his ambition to broadcast authentic voices.
Beyond that, he revealed that as part of his involvement, he spoke with Stapleton while watching footage.
“We were watching the first episode and I could give my opinion on different things, like where I was when it was happening, or what was going on, like in culture and music at that time. Then we would have conversations about it, and sometimes she would think about certain things, and sometimes she wouldn’t. She decides how it goes,” Jackson added.
Stapleton is a documentarian who has covered a wide range of subjects, including Roger Corman, actor and film producer; comedian Chelsea Handler, who is a former girlfriend of Jackson; football coach Jill Ellis; and she was behind the FX docuseries Pridewhich explores LGBTQ+ rights in the United States over several decades.
Jackson relied on Stapleton to tell an unbiased story through his lens, something he perhaps could not do himself due to his proximity to the subject. Over the course of four episodes, she hits the mark while giving the world a glimpse behind the curtain of who Combs is when the flashbulbs and fans are too far away to take a selfie.
“What you will see in the documentary, you have to attribute everything to Alex,” he said emphatically and proudly. “She put everything together through her pacing and her telling of the story. That’s why it doesn’t seem biased at all. It was important to us that [people] make their personal truths known and allow everyone to tell their story.
The talking heads include many names linked to Combs, such as singer Al B. Sure, who was married to Kim Porter before entering into a relationship with Combs; Danity Kane’s Aubrey O’Day; his former assistant Capricorn Clark; producer Lil Rod; Kirk Burrows, who co-founded Bad Boy Records with Combs. Combs’ ex-partner, Cassie Ventura, was asked to participate in the documentary, but she declined.
The story of Ventura’s tumultuous and abusive relationship with Combs is explored in Episode 3. It’s a tough but important watch, but it’s worth noting that nothing was gratuitous and was treated with respect. The same goes for the latest episode, when Lil Rod and Burrows speak out about the abuse, including mental, physical and sexual, they say they suffered at the hands of Combs. For both men, it proved difficult to tell their story on camera.
When men began accusing Combs of sexual abuse, comments were posted on social media mocking Combs for potentially being gay or bisexual. However, the documentary posits that power and control are the root cause of sexual abuse, not sexual attraction.
Stapleton noted, “Sexual violence is not a sexual preference. Sexual violence is sexual violence; if someone commits crimes like that or commits assault. I think that’s a very, very, very important thing that’s very important to this show. It’s not about identifying Sean Combs’ sexuality at all. When you have someone who assaults people, the conversation about his sexuality actually has to stay outside. It was important to show that there are women and men, and this is their truth, these are their allegations, and that they feel safe to share.
Jackson added, “I completely agree with what you said, because the power and the ability to be every individual that the woman has sex with allows her to be physically the size of every man that she’s ever given birth to. And it’s, ‘I’m completely chasing her. I’m going to do this and do that.’ So because he had put her in a space where he could make her follow the instructions he offered her, he was the one who did the most, especially with Cassie.
Working with Netflix, you would think that the legal team behind a documentary like this would be extremely diligent about banned stories. So the stories at the center of the project will be familiar, but with Stapleton adding a different point of view.
Over the course of four episodes, the production explores different eras of Combs’ life, such as his childhood as the son of Janice Combs, his college years, and episode 3 addresses Combs’ potential role in the murders of Tupac Shakur and Christopher Wallace, aka Biggie Smalls. Although the topic has been covered ad nauseam, the doc makes a strong case for how and why he might have been involved, as well as his ties to Duane “Keefe D” Davis, the former gang leader who was arrested and charged with Shakur’s murder in 2023.
Then there are obvious moments where the viewer will wonder why something isn’t explored in more depth, if at all. For example, singer and producer Sure, born Albert Joseph Brown III, never addressed the medical emergency that left him with organ failure, among other serious health problems, which were reportedly a part of Combs’ handiwork handled by someone other than him. It should be noted that Sure never filed a complaint against Combs regarding this matter.
The topic of legality will be addressed by Stapleton in an upcoming article to be published later today.
While the documentary mostly treads familiar territory, it’s the explosive videos showing Combs heading toward his arrest that offer a new perspective on his story.
When Jackson and Stapleton appeared on Hello America On Monday morning, they released a trailer showing viewers what to expect from the documentary, including these private videos. Combs quickly issued a statement against the production, calling it a “shameful hit piece” and saying the footage was “never authorized for release.”
Despite his complaint, Sean Combs: The Bottom Line fell at midnight on the west coast without problem.
In our conversation last week, Jackson talked about the importance of presenting these videos as a way to unmask a vulnerable and perhaps frightened Combs, who in the doc says he can only be compared to the Son of God.
“It allows you to see him there in that moment,” Jackson said, of those moments when Combs believed he was alone and still in control, even though his confidence seemed to be faltering.
On the experience of making the documentary with Stapleton, Jackson continued to sing his praises. He said, “That was it, Alex Stapleton,” while discussing the choices made regarding where each story would be highlighted in the documentary.
Their collaboration has been such a positive experience that it may continue as Combs’ legal troubles continue to unfold. More on Stapleton in our continuing coverage of the documentary’s release, but for now, a teaser.
“There are more things to come. There are more civil suits to come. I really see this as a new beginning in storytelling, going behind the curtain to figure out what happened. My prediction is that there will probably be more storytelling after this,” she said.
