documentaries

HBO Max and CNN Films to Serve Up New Anthony Bourdain Documentary

Photo: Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for Turner

After Anthony Bourdain’s untimely death last summer, fans and peers alike spent weeks paying tribute to the author and celebrity chef’s unique blend of acerbic wit and sincere existential rumination, which fans enjoyed via his travel docuseries Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations, The Layover, and CNN’s Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, among other shows. Now, HBO Max and CNN Films are set to release a documentary about Bourdain himself, which will be distributed in theaters by Focus Features.

The as-yet-unnamed film, which will air on CNN and HBO Max following its theatrical run, will be directed by documentarian Morgan Neville, Academy Award–winning director of 2013’s 20 Feet From Stardom, which offered a behind-the-scenes look at the backup singers whose contributions were often overshadowed by the massive names their talent supported. Neville also directed 2018’s critically acclaimed Mister Rogers documentary, Won’t You Be My Neighbor? Per the film’s press release, Bourdain’s estate is onboard and “will provide access to family photos, home movies, letters, music, and other content that will add greater insights into his work and life.”

HBO Max, CNN Films Serve Up Anthony Bourdain Documentary