In August. 9, and August. 10, Life, will air his new docuseries Survive Jeffrey Epstein. The airdates are significant, as the virus of Epstein, the disgraced financier and accused sex offender, was found dead in his jail cell in August. 10, 2019. And this story, as the network’s hit Survive To R. Kelly prior to this, focuses on those who survived to sexual assaults perpetrated by the virus of Epstein and those in his inner circle. The most prominent figure in the inner circle? Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend, accused of grooming female, who was arrested on 2 July.
Bob Friedman, one of the main executive producers, told journalists that cover this summer’s all-virtual Television Critics Association press tour that it was important for the air this night, four hours on the anniversary of Epstein’s demise-especially because “the story we have told has been quite a lot in the survivors own words.”
“The survivors who bear this burden of abuse; the abuse, which, we dare to believe, is hidden from view,” he said of the docuseries, which is directed by Anne Sundberg and Ricki Stern. “We went in some of the stories and the reason why, with the manufacture of sex trafficking pyramid scheme . . . we take a look at the recruitment that existed, the grooming of potential victims, and how supposedly Ghislaine Maxwell trained recruiters to create this abuse of the tubing in which we live through.”
The British socialite is currently awaiting trial on federal charges, including sex trafficking and the seduction of minors. (She has pleaded not guilty and has refused to do evil). In the sneak peek released during the panel (below), one of the survivors, he recalled, “I really thought that [Maxwell] really don’t care about me, and so was a giant blow to learn that she was in everything.”
Due to Maxwell’s arrest, the Survive the producers constructed a fourth episode. “We think that the story still is not only relevant about Jeffrey, but clearly, the Ghislaine history is such an important part,” Friedman said, addding that “the history of women, the recruitment of women is only one of the elements.”
“Our series really brings you up to the day of today, right now,” Stern said. “That, literally, ended yesterday, and going on the air in a week.” Stern said that the filmmakers talked with survivors as recently as “the last two, three weeks.” She and Sundberg began to reach the survivors of the last year, making sure to stress that “this is going to be different to that of a piece of news” and “really wants to spend time with you and have your story portrayed in their own words.”
“There is so much strength in the stories of these women, in their history, to understand where they come from and where they are today is so powerful,” he said. “And that was something that we wanted to make sure that the series is portraying.”
Friedman and others at the TCA panel also insisted that his mini-series should not be confused with the Netflix of the Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, which premiered in May. This is because they feel that their program allows for more survivors’ voices to be heard and will also feature other players in this story.
Given that this story is still in development, could be a possible sequel of this team reporting? Friedman said that, given that Maxwell trial is not scheduled to begin until July 2021 — and that Epstein had already pleaded guilty and has been convicted of procuring minor girls for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute with little impact on your social life — “I can’t imagine that there will be more to talk about. Clearly, we feel very fortunate that we have been able to — from the point of view of the synchronization — to get the story of Ghislaine, because she was such an important piece of this story.”
