Peacock isn’t the first out of the gate with a nonfiction project about the charges facing Sean “Diddy” Combs — that would be the ever-nimble TMZ, which released a special in April 2024 that was soon followed by others from 20/20 and Nightline.
But the NBCUniversal-owned streamer still made a splash on Thursday with the trailer for its upcoming Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy. The 90-minute documentary special, set for Jan. 14, promises to dig deep into the explosive claims Combs is facing, tracing the musician and entrepreneur’s rise to power and featuring insiders like Al B. Sure! — the ex-husband of Comb’s longtime girlfriend Kim Porter — a former bodyguard, a makeup artist, an intern, a winner on Making the Band and a childhood pal.
The Peacock project will soon be followed by others that are sure to make headlines of their own. Rapper-slash-entertainment mogul Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and the producers behind the 2024 ratings juggernaut Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV are working on separate projects.
Below, see a list of major nonfiction titles that have already been released or are in the works as this dark twist in Combs’ story unfolds. And the saga isn’t even over yet: Combs remains in jail in New York awaiting trial, which is currently set for May.
The mogul has pleaded not guilty to charges of sex trafficking, racketeering conspiracy and transportation to engage in prostitution. Combs’ legal team said in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter that the documentaries included “unchecked claims” and “baseless conspiracy theories.” Combs “unequivocally denies these false allegations, which are harmful, defamatory and supported by credible evidence,” the team said, adding that the facts will prevail in court.
- TMZ Presents: The Downfall of Diddy (April 28, 2024), The Indictment (Sept. 27, 2024) and Inside the Freak-Offs (Nov. 12, 2024): The intrepid minds at TMZ followed up the publication’s extensive coverage of the federal raids of Combs’ Los Angeles, New York and Miami homes with three hourlong specials about the allegations against Combs and his legal troubles. Former Danity Kane member Aubrey O’Day, former Bad Boy Records artist Mark Curry, Combs’ friends Stevie J. and Ray J, two people who said they attended Diddy parties and several attorneys were among those who spoke for the episodes.
- IMPACT x Nightline: Diddy’s Downfall (June 6, 2024) and Diddy: Drugs, Lies and Freak-Offs (Sept. 26, 2024): The two roughly half-hour episodes of the ABC News program charted Combs’ rise and fall through interviews with Cassie Ventura’s friend Tiffany Red, R. Kelly survivor Lizzette Martinez, former Combs collaborator Donnie Klang and former New York Police Department detective Derrick Parker.
- Secret Life of Diddy: A Special Edition of 20/20 (Oct. 9, 2024): The one-hour ABC News special, released less than a month after Combs was arrested in New York on multiple charges and plumbed the unfolding situation with fresh reporting, interviews and analysis. Combs’ friend Ray J, Red and Martinez all spoke for the project.
- Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy (Jan. 14): Promising contributions from former members of Combs’ camp, the upcoming Peacock special is already grabbing attention. The trailer, released Thursday, contains allegations that Diddy hosted underage girls in rooms where sexual activity was taking place.
- Untitled Investigation Discovery project (sometime in 2025): Fresh off of the success of Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, ID and Mary Robertson’s production company, Maxine, are re-teaming for a series on Combs that remains in production. Investigative reporting from Rolling Stone is set to be featured in the series, which will be released on ID and Max. (THR and Rolling Stone are both owned by the same parent company, Penske Media Corporation. THR is in development on an unrelated project with Maxine.)
- Untitled Netflix documentary series (release date not yet announced): The Alex Stapleton-directed project, executive produced by Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, is currently in production. In a July cover story with THR, Jackson — who famously has been embroiled in a long-running feud with Combs — explained that he wanted to make the series because “I’m the only one from hip-hop culture that’s produced quality projects,” working behind the scenes as well as in front of the camera.
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