Ronan Farrow has signed an exclusive three-year deal with HBO to develop a series of investigative documentary specials, which will begin later this year and focus on personal and systemic abuses of power in the vein of his explosive New Yorker reported pieces on Harvey Weinstein, the first of which was published in October. (Weinstein has denied all allegations of nonconsensual sex.)
Casey Bloys, the president of HBO programming, announced the deal Thursday. “Ronan Farrow’s extraordinary, revelatory reporting for the New Yorker has helped to propel a string of other investigations, breakthroughs and overdue conversations,” said Bloys. “His work has contributed to this watershed moment in our culture, and we are excited to provide a platform for this dogged reporter to pursue projects that continue to speak truth to power.”
Farrow, the son of actress Mia Farrow and Woody Allen, discussed how his family has affected his life and approach to work in a cover story for the Hollywood Reporter. “You see early in life with that kind of a family background the way in which the most powerful men in America wield power for good and for ill,” said Farrow. “And probably, yes, the family background made me someone who understood the abuse of power from an early age.”
Allen has been accused of molesting his daughter, Dylan Farrow, at age 7, an allegation that Dylan Farrow detailed in a 2014 New York Times op-ed. Allen was not charged in 1992 when the allegation surfaced and the director has long denied the claims. (“Of course, I did not molest Dylan,” Allen wrote in his own 2014 New York Times story.) In the wake of a recent article written by Dylan Farrow for the Los Angeles Times, many actors who have worked with Allen — including Greta Gerwig — have apologized and stated they would not work with him again. (Following the publication of that recent article, a representative for Allen said, “Dylan Farrow’s allegations against Woody Allen, which she first made 25 years ago, have been thoroughly examined by law enforcement officials and child welfare investigators. The investigators concluded unambiguously that Dylan Farrow was not sexually abused. No charges were ever filed, and the reason is simple: because Woody Allen is innocent.”)
Ronan Farrow, a Rhodes Scholar and Yale Law School-educated attorney, hosted a daily show on MSNBC until 2015. Since then, he’s done investigative segments for NBC news, “Undercovered with Ronan Farrow,” which have aired on the Today show.
At HBO, Farrow will also be producing a number of segments for the networks other platforms. “Over the course of my television and print investigations in recent years, it’s become clear to me that there’s a new generation of viewers seeking out serious, substantive reporting that takes on powerful interests and attacks systemic unfairness that too often is swept under the rug,” Farrow said. “There’s an extraordinary team at HBO committed to that kind of journalism, I know HBO is the right home for this work, and I can’t wait to get started.”
(Excerpt) Read More in: Entertainment Weekly