April 15th, 2022

CNN FILMS To Premiere Alexey Navalny Documentary For CNN And CNN+ On Sunday, April 24 – Fresh From North American Special Event Screenings

Daniel Roher Directs The Riveting NAVALNY; Film Unravels Stunning Assassination Plot, Allegedly Linked To The Kremlin, Against Former Russian Presidential Candidate

Fresh from its North American special event screenings with Warner Bros. Pictures and Fathom Events, the Daniel Roher-directed NAVALNY will premiere on CNN TV in North America, and via the CNN+ streaming service in the United States, beginning Sunday, April 24.  The film explores the attempted assassination of enigmatic Russian anti-corruption campaigner and former presidential candidate, Alexey Navalny.  The CNN TV broadcast will air at 9:00pm Eastern and will re-air at 11:00pm Eastern on April 24, presented with limited commercial interruption.  The film will encore Friday, April 29 and Saturday, May 14 at 9:00pm Eastern on television.  NAVALNY will premiere on CNN+ at 9:00pm Eastern on April 24, with no commercials.  NAVALNY, a Daniel Roher Film, is presented by CNN Films and HBO Max, in association with Fishbowl Films, RaeFilm Studios, and Cottage M.

 

In August of 2020, shocking social media video emerged of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, writhing in pain inside a commercial airplane as alarmed crew and fellow passengers tried to render aid.  Roher takes viewers inside what happened behind the alarming global headlines that followed: heated arguments between Navalny’s wife and the initial local Russian hospital team over his care; Navalny’s eventual emergency medical evacuation to Germany; and, the remarkable German assertion that Navalny had been poisoned by a Russian government-linked nerve agent, Novichok.

 

Alexey Navalny, had long ago made powerful enemies in Russia, including Vladimir Putin himself.  In a riveting account that unwinds like a real-life thriller, Roher methodically documents the careful research and analysis that unmasked the would-be killers, and why they sought to kill the man Putin apparently considers a serious threat to his power.  Roher interweaves interviews with Navalny, Navalny’s family, and contemporaneous eyewitnesses to key events, with other records.  The film follows the investigation into the assassination plot, and includes reporting from the investigative news organizations, Bellingcat and CNN.

 

“We are pleased to offer NAVALNY via CNN and CNN+, making this critical film widely available,” said Amy Entelis, executive vice president for talent and content development for CNN Worldwide.  “Especially as Americans are looking to understand the broader context for the tragic events happening in Eastern Europe, we are able to offer NAVALNY to television and streaming audiences,” said Courtney Sexton, senior vice president for CNN Films.  Both Entelis and Sexton are executive producers for NAVALNY.

 

Directed by Daniel Roher, NAVALNY is produced by Odessa Rae of RaeFilm Studios, Diane Becker and Melanie Miller of Fishbowl Films, and Shane Boris of Cottage M.  Amy Entelis and Courtney Sexton of CNN Films, and Maria Pevchikh of the Anti-Corruption Foundation, are executive producers of the documentary. The editorial team was led by Langdon Page and Maya Daisy HawkeChristo Grozev is the executive director for Bellingcat, whose work is featured in the film.  Prior to its theatrical exhibition, NAVALNY was honored with both the Audience Award in the U.S. Documentary competition, and the fan-selected Festival Favorite Award, following its ‘secret’ world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival.  The film is currently screening in European and American film festivals, and exhibiting at theaters in Britain.

 

NAVALNY, will stream live for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com and CNN OTT and mobile apps under “TV Channels,” or CNNgo where available.  The film will be available on demand for CNN+ subscribers, and for pay TV subscribers via CNN.com, CNN apps, and cable operator platforms.  While watching the film, viewers can comment and interact with others across social media platforms by using the hashtag #NAVALNY.

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About CNN Films

CNN Films produces and acquires documentary feature and short films for theatrical and festival exhibition and distribution across CNN’s multiple platforms.  Amy Entelis, executive vice president of talent and content development, oversees the strategy for CNN Films; Courtney Sexton, senior vice president for CNN Films, works day-to-day with filmmakers to oversee projects.  Acclaimed CNN Films include JULIA, the surprising biography of chef, television star, and author, Julia Child, from filmmakers Betsy West and Julie Cohen, who previously directed the Academy Award®-nominated RBG, about the life and legacy of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg; CITIZEN ASHE, directed by Sam Pollard and Rex Miller, about tennis great and humanitarian Arthur Ashe; Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain, executive produced with HBO Max, directed by Morgan Neville; and, DIONNE WARWICK: Don’t Make Me Over, about the singer and humanitarian, directed by Dave Wooley.  For more information about CNN Films, please visit www.CNN.com/CNNFilms, follow @CNNFilms via Twitter, and join Keep Watching, an exclusive, members-only community for CNN Films & CNN Original Series https://cnn.it/3qTScB4.

 

About CNN+

CNN+ is CNN’s subscription streaming service that features new, live, on demand, and interactive programming that is separate and distinct from CNN, CNN International, HLN, and CNN en Español linear TV channels.  With live, on demand and interactive programming, subscribers can stream a new content slate of shows for a fresh take on the day’s headlines, all while taking part in the conversation and diving deeper into the stories of our world.  To learn more and subscribe, visit www.cnnplus.com.

About HBO Max

HBO Max® is WarnerMedia’s direct-to-consumer platform, offering best in class quality entertainment. HBO Max features the greatest array of storytelling for all audiences from the iconic brands of HBO, Warner Bros., DC, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim, Turner Classic Movies and much more. The streaming platform launched in the United States in May 2020 and introduced an advertising-supported subscription tier in June 2021. HBO Max recently began its global roll out launching in 39 markets across Latin America and the Caribbean, and will be followed by the replacement of HBO-branded streaming services in Europe later this year.

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