Former president Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama are getting mildly candid about their Netflix deal. On Wednesday, the documentary American Factory—the duo’s first title under their Higher Ground production banner—will make its debut on the streamer. To celebrate, Netflix released a brief (and carefully manicured) clip of a conversation the Obamas had with Oscar-nominated American Factory filmmakers Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar, in which the presidential couple spoke a bit about why they decided to go the production route after leaving the White House.
“Higher Ground is a reflection of both of us,” Michelle said, naming the couple’s new production company. “So that means that our platform is gonna look a little bit like everything, just like the world is a little bit of everything.”
“We want people to be able to get outside of themselves, and experience and understand the lives of somebody else, which is what a good story does,” Barack added. “It helps all of us feel some sort of solidarity with each other.”
American Factory examines a manufacturer in Ohio that is backed by a Chinese billionaire and operated by thousands of blue-collar Americans. Netflix acquired it after the film’s success at Sundance, where it won the directing award. The Obamas became attached to the film earlier this year.
In the clip, Michelle praises the doc, saying the portraits of the factory workers reminded her of “my background. That was my father, and that was reflected in this film.”
“They exhibited a lot more trust than I would have expected,” Barack later added of the documentary subjects.
The Obamas’ Netflix slate has shaped up over the last few months. In addition to American Factory, Higher Ground is also set to produce a film adaptation of the Pulitzer Prize–wining biography Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom; a film about the disability-rights movement; an adaptation of The Fifth Risk; and a series titled Overlooked, based on the New York Times’s series of obituaries for overlooked figures.
— How intimacy coordinators are changing Hollywood sex scenes — The Crown’s Helena Bonham Carter on her “scary” encounter with Princess Margaret — The Trump-baiting Anthony Scaramucci interview that roiled the president — What happens when you try to be the next Game of Thrones — Why are teens flocking to Jake Gyllenhaal’s Broadway show? — From the Archive: Keanu Reeves, young and restless
Looking for more? Sign up for our daily Hollywood newsletter and never miss a story.
.jpg)
