R. Kelly Movie & Doc Series for Lifetime

Lifetime has greenlit a new documentary series and feature movie about controversial R&B star R. Kelly, who has a history of alleged abuse of underage African-American women.

Lifetime is relaunching its Emmy Award-winning public affairs campaign Stop Violence Against Women, with key programs to bring awareness of abusive behaviors that need to be put to an end. Partnering with advocacy groups and influential thought leaders, Lifetime will provide a platform to give women a voice where they have previously been unheard.

The R. Kelly project is the first under the new initiative. In the documentary series and untitled feature movie, women are emerging from the shadows and uniting their voices to share their stories.

Cultural critic, filmmaker and activist dream hampton is an executive producer on the series. Ilene Kahn Power (Gia, Who Killed Clark Rockefeller) serves as an executive producer on the movie. The untitled documentary series and movie are executive produced by Joel Karsberg and Jesse Daniels of Kreativ Inc., which, as part of their production deal, is backed exclusively by Bunim/Murray Productions.

“What we’ve seen—in the last year in particular—is the tremendous power of women’s voices when given the opportunity to share their truth,” said Brie Miranda Bryant, senior VP of unscripted development and programming at Lifetime. “But there are important stories still untold, stories of bravery, resilience and defiance that demand to be heard. This is one of those stories.”

“Lifetime has always been an incredible platform not only for storytelling but also a catalyst to inspire action and change,” said Tanya Lopez, executive VP of movies, limited series and original movie acquisitions at Lifetime. “Now more than ever, we have the responsibility to make sure women are heard and supported.”

“We’ve been working for over a year to bring forth the stories of these women,” said Joel Karsberg, executive producer and CEO of Kreativ Inc. “We are proud to team with Lifetime to shed light on these stories as well as an industry that has looked the other way for so many years.”

“Some very brave black women have trusted us with their stories, their truth and their trauma,” said dream hampton. “They are survivors and I’m honored to share their stories with the world.”