50 Cent is evidently pleased Oprah Winfery is no longer executive producing a forthcoming documentary about Russell Simmons. On Friday (January 10), only hours after the news broke Winfrey had stepped away, the Power mogul headed to Instagram to express his gratitude toward the talk show queen.
“Alright, alright, alright Oprah we love you, thank you for responding,” he captioned a screenshot of a Deadline article. “if you ever need me for anything I’m here.#starzgettheapp #abcforlife.”
Simmons responded in the comment section with a simple prayer hands emoji (or high five emoji, whatever is preferred).
The documentary reportedly revolves around Drew Dixon, who claims the Def Jam Recordings co-founder raped her in his New York City apartment in 1995. While Oprah noted she believed the alleged victim, she cited a conflict with the filmmakers’ vision. As a result, she’s not only distancing herself from the project but also blocking its path to Apple TV+.
In a statement obtained by Deadline, Oprah said more work is needed on the doc to “illuminate the full scope of what the victims endured and it has become clear that the filmmakers and I are not aligned in that creative vision.” She also added it’s too soon to premiere a film she feels isn’t complete at Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah next month.
“In my opinion, there is more work to be done on the film to illuminate the full scope of what the victims endured and it has become clear that the filmmakers and I are not aligned in that creative vision. Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering are talented filmmakers.
“I have great respect for their mission but given the filmmakers’ desire to premiere the film at the Sundance Film Festival before I believe it is complete, I feel it’s best to step aside. I will be working with Time’s Up to support the victims and those impacted by abuse and ***ual harassment.”
Simmons was initially shocked Oprah would be attached to the project considering they’re close friends. In a lengthy Instagram post from last month, which he reposted early Saturday morning (January 11), he expressed his disappointment, a sentiment he reiterated to hitmusic.
“I want to stay out of the mud,” he told DX last month. “I love Oprah. I’m disappointed.”
50 sided with Simmons and blasted Winfrey for seeming to only go after black men — in true 50 Cent fashion.
“I don’t understand why Oprah is going after black men,” he wrote. “No Harvey Weinstein, No Epstein, just Micheal jackson and Russell Simmons this shit is sad. Gale hit R Kelly with the death blow documentary. Every time I hear Micheal jackson I don’t know whether to dance or think about the little boys butts.These documentary’s are publicly convicting their targets, it makes them guilty till proven innocent.”
Revisit the post below.