Jay-Z’s previously-announced, six-part documentary detailing the life story of Trayvon Martin now has a release date and a teaser trailer, which you can watch above. After the rapper-turned-mogul partnered with The Weinstein Company in 2016 and tried to buy his former partner’s shares late last year, it looks like things are back on schedule with the doc, which will tell more of Martin’s life story preceding his fatal encounter with vigilante George Zimmerman. The Rest In Power: The Trayvon Martin Story series will appear on the newly-christened Paramount Network in July.
Jay has made social justice a particular focus of his filmmaking endeavor, starting with another documentary about Kalief Browder, who was arrested and held in Riker’s Island for three years without charges or a trial. As that story helped bring reform to the New York justice system, Jay clearly hopes for similar results with Trayvon Martin’s story, which he says “serves as a beacon of light and hope.” Martin was stalked and killed by Florida resident George Zimmerman, who followed the teen because he felt he looked suspicious due to his hoodie. Zimmerman was later exonerated on the grounds of self-defense, a response which caused a significant backlash and can be seen as the spark for the Black Lives Matter movement.
Zimmerman, for his part, issued threats against the production after he says producers pestered him and his parents to appear in the filming.
