According to The New York Times Magazine, a lengthy documentary has brought forward serious allegations from Prince’s former girlfriends, claiming he engaged in physical and emotional abuse.

The film, directed by Ezra Edelman (“O.J.: Made in America”), has been in the works with Netflix for almost five years and features interviews with numerous people who were close to Prince, including ex-partners, business associates, and friends. Disputes over the documentary’s content have arisen between the filmmakers and Prince’s estate.

In addition to discussions about his musical talents, the film reveals aspects of his troubled personality, charges of abusive behavior, insights into his challenging childhood, and the emotional aftermath of losing his first child with Mayte Garcia, as reported by the Times.

YSL News has reached out for comments from Prince’s estate, Netflix, and Edelman’s representatives.

Unreleased Prince documentary includes former partners, abuse allegations

The documentary features interviews with several of Prince’s ex-girlfriends, including Jill Jones, who recounted a troubling encounter from 1984 when she visited him at a hotel with a friend.

Jones described a scenario where after Prince kissed her friend, she slapped him, leading to a violent confrontation where he punched her repeatedly. Despite this, she chose not to press charges, fearing it would ruin his career, and she remained in a relationship with him for years, feeling love for him.

Another ex, Susannah Melvoin, the sister of Wendy Melvoin from The Revolution, shared her experiences of living with Prince, detailing how he monitored her phone calls and discouraged her from leaving their shared residence.

The documentary also reportedly includes an interview with Prince’s first wife, Mayte Garcia. It chronicles their romance, beginning when he was 35 and she was just 16 after he saw her in belly dancing videos. In one letter highlighted in the film, Prince expressed his admiration for her purity, explaining he loved her because she had no past relationships.

Garcia shared memories of their relationship, revealing they became intimate when she was 19 and married at the age of 22. On their wedding night, Prince gifted her two songs: “Friend, Lover, Sister, Mother/Wife” and “Let’s Have a Baby.”

After their son was born eight months prematurely and diagnosed with Type 2 Pfeiffer syndrome, they made the heartbreaking decision to let him go off life support. Shortly after, Prince left for a performance in Miami, as mentioned in the film.

Garcia recounted a moment, just a week after their son’s death, when Prince interrupted her while she was grieving to inform her that Oprah would be interviewing them that morning. Private footage revealed Prince commenting on Garcia’s outfit during the interview with a remark about her appearance.

She also noted that Prince advised her against sharing their child’s death in the interview, and following this, their relationship grew distant. Although their marriage ended, Garcia refrains from expressing any negativity towards him in the documentary, according to the Times.

Prince collaborators recall ‘controlling’ nature

Musician Lisa Coleman from The Revolution recollected how Prince reacted when the band requested better compensation; he insisted that if they truly cared for him, they wouldn’t demand more. When the band threatened to leave, Prince called their bluff, resulting in the band disbanding in 1986.

Wendy Melvoin revealed that during a time when Prince was deepening his religious beliefs, he pressured her to renounce her homosexuality as a condition for reuniting The Revolution, contrasting sharply with his previous embrace of her sexual identity. This is just one of many revealing stories uncovered in the documentary.

According to the Times, there were several elements in the film that Prince’s estate insisted be altered or eliminated.

Prince’s Troubled Upbringing Exposed in Unreleased Documentary

Interviews featured in the documentary reveal that Prince was expelled from his mother’s home at the age of 12 and his father’s home by the age of 14.

Prince’s sister, Tyka Nelson, recounted the abuse that took place in their family, largely instigated by their father. The documentary also highlights the fluctuating relationship between Prince and his relatives over the years.

The film delves into Prince’s desire for his parents’ acknowledgment. One heartfelt note addressed to his father, which appeared in the documentary, read, “Hi Poppa, please play side with a star on it. It’s longer and better. Love you, Prince,” written on a copy of “1999.” As the film progresses, it illustrates Prince reaching significant career milestones while showing attempts to mend the relationship with his father, who, in interviews, sought to claim credit for Prince’s accomplishments.

Prince’s Estate Halts Release of Extensive Documentary

The Times Magazine reported that over 20 interviews were conducted concerning the film. Deputy editor Sasha Weissis viewed the unreleased documentary last year during a small private screening in Brooklyn, which other notable attendees like Questlove also attended.

According to the Times, when Edelman’s team organized a viewing for Prince’s estate, a lawyer representing the estate delivered 17 pages outlining the requested changes. Although Edelman’s team made some revisions, they reportedly could not satisfy the estate’s demands.

In July, Variety announced that the extensive documentary appeared to be “dead in the water,” as Prince’s estate alleged the film contained numerous “factual inaccuracies.”

Netflix, in a statement provided to the Times, acknowledged that issues involving Prince’s estate contributed to the documentary’s delay, though it did not provide further details.

“This documentary project has proven to be as intricate as Prince himself,” the statement read. “We have diligently documented Prince’s life and have worked hard to assist Ezra’s series. However, there remain significant contractual disputes with the estate that are preventing the release of the documentary.”

Prince passed away in 2016 at the age of 57 at his compound in Minneapolis. Public records released six weeks posthumously revealed that he died from an accidental fentanyl overdose.