CNN Films and HBO Max Have Commissioned New True Crime Documentary, ‘American Pain’

CNN Movies and HBO Max, in affiliation with TIME Studios, have commissioned a new true crime tale, American Suffering, directed by Emmy® Award-winner Darren Foster and manufactured by Motto Images, Muck Media, and Fishbowl Films that traces the rise and tumble of Chris and Jeff George, identical twins who are considered to be America’s most prolific opioid kingpins. In just a several limited yrs of procedure, the Georges ran a pill mill empire that attracted customers from about the state, and spawned a prescription drug trafficking network with an approximated street price of additional than $500M. The movie will premiere at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival in June, and is currently slated for release in 2023.

Academy Award-nominated, Emmy® Award-successful producers Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, and Carolyn Hepburn of Motto Photographs are producers, together with Diane Becker of Fishbowl Films. Amy Entelis and Courtney Sexton of CNN Films are executive producers. CNN Films retains around the world and North American television rights to the film. HBO Max retains streaming legal rights. Theatrical legal rights for the documentary continue being accessible.

“The George brothers had been early pioneers in Florida’s pill mill increase and kicked the doorway open up for vibrant imitators who jointly turned prescription painkillers into the greatest drug racket to hit the Sunshine State considering that the cocaine cowboys of the 1980s. The large distinction: this time, the suppliers were not some Colombian drug cartel it was the U.S. pharmaceutical marketplace pumping out billions of highly effective and addictive tablets, unleashing the worst drug epidemic in American background. I could not be a lot more grateful to CNN Movies, HBO Max, TIME Studios, and my proficient companions at Motto Images for encouraging me comprehend this WILD tale,” said Foster, director of American Suffering.

“With its ‘evil-twin’ people and stunning narrative turns, Darren’s thoroughly-researched tale is paced like a suspenseful site-turner. The toll of the opioid epidemic on the nation is a essential tale. We are really happy to re-group with Julie, Chris, and Carolyn to tell one more compelling story of American everyday living,” said Courtney Sexton, senior vice president for CNN Films. Sexton and Amy Entelis, govt vice president for talent and material improvement for CNN Worldwide, are executive producers for American Ache.

Foster’s crime fable unfolds across a sundrenched Florida landscape as similar twin brothers Jeff and Chris George seized an opportunity to extend their steroid business enterprise into the bigger bucks of opioid suffering clinics. By a series of exceptional jailhouse interviews, the twins explain how they employed rogue medical professionals to prescribe alarming quantities of opioid painkillers to the highest selection of patients.

“At TIME, we look to share stories of folks and communities that are reflective of more substantial societal difficulties. American Suffering is a remarkably persuasive real crime story that sheds mild on the opioid crisis like practically nothing we’ve noticed just before, exploring the agony of addiction and corruption through unforgettable figures. Darren brings a sensitivity and dignity to this movie – it is truly stunning. We are thrilled to be doing work with Motto Pictures, and to partner once once more with CNN Movies, on this fantastic undertaking,” Alexandra Johnes, co-head of documentary for TIME Studios.

Foster’s blend of cinema verité, undercover footage, wiretaps, and immediate-to-digital camera interviews with vital gamers and rivals expose how the brothers even utilized their individual mother, and Chris’ girlfriend, to help deal with the income business and supervise the administration of up to 500 sufferers for each working day. Their greed and extravagant life captivated the attention of the FBI.

In only a several several years of procedure, the brothers have been liable for thousands and thousands of doses of opioids produced to sufferers by allegedly fabricating affected individual information. Foster incorporates undercover movie and interviews with federal brokers to propel his fast-paced plot, describing how the legal investigation took ever darker turns, as the Georges ran their organization in a mob-like style, ruthlessly threatening competitors, whilst amassing a fortune from individuals, even as dozens of their clientele were being dying from overdoses.

Motto Photographs and CNN Films earlier collaborated on Enlighten Us: The Rise and Drop of James Arthur Ray, directed by Jenny Carchman and Adore, Gilda, about the trailblazing comedienne, directed by Lisa D’Apolito. CNN Movies and TIME STUDIOS are government producers for John Lewis: Very good Trouble, about the everyday living and legacy of the civil legal rights icon and federal legislator, directed by Dawn Porter and GABBY GIFFORDS Will not Back again DOWN, about the Congresswoman who survived an assassination try and, with each other with her spouse, will work to elevate consciousness to gun security, directed by Academy Award®-nominated Betsy West and Julie Cohen.