Colin Kaepernick Documentary, Directed by Spike Lee, Canceled by ESPN

ESPN Films has canceled an eight-part docuseries about Colin Kaepernick, which was set to be directed by Spike Lee.

According to NBC Sports, the network confirmed the decision on Saturday, August 16, citing creative impasses among the parties involved.

“ESPN, Colin Kaepernick, and Lee have collectively decided to no longer proceed with this project as a result of certain creative differences,” ESPN said in a statement. ESPN Films had commissioned the series as an eight-episode project focused on Kaepernick.

Lee separately acknowledged the cancellation in comments to Reuters a day earlier.

“It’s not coming out,” he said. Lee declined to elaborate, noting he is bound by confidentiality: “I can’t talk about it.”

Neither the filmmaker nor the network provided additional details, and it remains unclear how much footage had been completed or who had participated in filming.

Signs of strain around the collaboration surfaced last fall. In September, Puck’s Matt Belloni reported “heated disagreements between Kaepernick [and Lee] over the direction of the project.”

The newest statements from Lee and ESPN did not address that earlier report. Kaepernick has not issued separate public comments beyond being named in ESPN’s announcement.

The now-shelved docuseries was expected to revisit the timeline that brought Kaepernick to national attention.

Nine years ago this month, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback was observed sitting during the national anthem before a preseason game and later explained that he declined to stand to protest the treatment of minorities by law enforcement. His NFL career ended after that season.

He subsequently filed a collusion grievance against the league; the matter was settled without a full hearing.

Since entering free agency in early 2017, Kaepernick has had limited engagement from teams, with only one visit with the Seattle Seahawks in 2017, a workout with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022, and no contract offers.