A documentary titled Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields has gotten a first teaser on Wednesday morning and a Hulu premiere date has been set for April 3, after the film wowed crowds in its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. The two-part series follows actor, model, and cultural icon Brooke Shields as she grows from a sexualized young girl to a woman realising her power. Her tale, which serves as a mirror to a culture that objectifies women and girls, depicts the difficulties and rewards of attaining agency in a harsh environment.
The brief teaser for the docu-series depicts clips of Shields at various public appearances with a voiceover of her saying: “I spent my life owing people things and doing whatever they wanted. I finally asked myself, ‘What will I be if I don’t allow that anymore?’”
Shields shared the trailer on Twitter and said: “Mark your calendars… #PrettyBaby is coming to @hulu on April 3!!! Who’s watching?”
Mark your calendars… #PrettyBaby is coming to @hulu on April 3!!! Who’s watching? 💛@GStephanopoulos @abcnewsstudios @lanawilson @MatadorContent @BOATROCKER pic.twitter.com/pKSiZlYNxz
— Brooke Shields (@BrookeShields) March 1, 2023
Shields opens up for the first time about her early experiences in Hollywood in the documentary.
The film follows her from her beginnings as a child commercial model to her sexualization in films, beginning at the age of 12 in “Pretty Baby” (1978) and ending at the age of 15 in “The Blue Lagoon” (1980). Shields’ childhood encounters with older guys on set are a recurring element in the memories she shares in the documentary.
Shields, 15, was forced to be sexual on camera in “Blue Lagoon,” a disturbing film about two adolescents falling in love, despite never having been sexual with a guy before. The following film she worked on, “Endless Love,” was directed by the late Italian filmmaker Franco Zeffirelli, who began twisting Shields’ toe as punishment for not depicting sex correctly.
“Zeffirelli kept grabbing my toe and, like, twisting it so that I had a look of… I guess ecstasy?” Shields says in the documentary, recalling her disturbing experiences on set. “But it was more angst than anything because he was hurting me.”
In addition to Shield’s improper encounters with older men, the documentary focuses on her troubled relationship with her own mother, Teri Shields, who also functioned as her daughter’s doting but alcoholic manager. Brooke Shields says that Teri, who died in 2012, was a self-assured stage mom whose only goal seemed to be to make her daughter a star, with little to no regard for her wellbeing.
One scene in the documentary features a clip of Barbara Walters asking Teri, “Can’t someone say to you that you are exploiting the sensuality of a child?” Teri answers by saying, “If that’s all I was doing, probably, yes. But that’s not all I’m doing with Brooke, or what Brooke is doing.”
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Shields unknowingly began her professional career as a child model at the age of 11 months before landing her first acting gig in Louis Malle’s controversial film Pretty Baby at the age of 12. The young star became the face of the 1980s, with Calvin Klein advertising and prominent parts in The Blue Lagoon and Endless Love. The whole time Shields was put in a position where she had to navigate the intense scrutiny of the press and a culture that sought to commodify and objectify her endlessly. Shields returned to the entertainment business as an adult after breaking norms for actresses at the time and attending college, but it wasn’t until she came to trust herself and her instincts that she was able to establish her identity and voice.
Lana Wilson, well known for her Taylor Swift documentary “Miss Americana,” has directed the two-part docuseries, which is also the first project from George Stephanopoulos and Ali Wentworth’s new production firm BedBy8 for ABC studios. Christine O’Malley and Jack Turner serve as producers for the documentary, while Jay Peterson and Todd Lubin of Matador Content also serve as executive producers. Shields is repped by UTA, Untitled and Ziffren Brittenham.
Here’s how you can stream “Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields” on April 3 on Hulu from outside the US.
