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Streaming giant says claims by Combs’s lawyers are ‘false’ and that its footage was ‘legally obtained’
Roisin O'ConnorWednesday 03 December 2025 08:38 GMTComments
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Netflix is standing by its documentary series about disgraced music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, after his lawyers accused the streaming giant of “corporate retaliation”.
The Alexandria Stapleton-directed show Sean Combs: The Reckoning, which was executive-produced by Combs’s rival, 50 Cent, debuted on Netflix on Tuesday (2 December).
Combs – who is months into his four-year sentence after being found guilty of prostitution-related charges – has branded it a “shameful hit piece” and claimed that footage of him used in the docuseries was obtained through unlawful means.
His lawyers also alleged that 50 Cent, real name Curtis Jackson, paid people to be critical of him and that the “In Da Club” rapper was enlisted after Netflix failed to secure Combs’s involvement.
“The claims being made about Sean Combs: The Reckoning are false,” a Netflix spokesperson told Deadline on Tuesday evening.
“The project has no ties to any past conversations between Sean Combs and Netflix. The footage of Combs leading up to his indictment and arrest was legally obtained.”
open image in gallerySean 'Diddy' Combs (left) accused Netflix of orchestrating a ‘hit piece’ against him (Getty)The statement added: “This is not a hit piece or an act of retribution. Curtis Jackson is an executive producer but does not have creative control. No one was paid to participate.”
Combs’s representatives told Deadline that “after watching the series and now knowing what is in it, Sean’s team is reviewing its legal options and will decide shortly how best to respond”.
A teaser clip for the documentary released on Monday (1 December) shows Combs in September 2024, filmed as pressure mounted in the federal sex-crime investigation against him.
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“We’re losing,” he says in a hotel room, phone in hand, before calling for “somebody that’ll work with us that has dealt in the dirtiest of dirty business”.
In a statement posted to Netflix’s Tudum website, Stapleton asserted that the footage used in the docuseries was “obtained completely legally”.
“We moved heaven and earth to keep the filmmaker’s identity confidential,” she said.
“One thing about Sean Combs is that he’s always filming himself, and it’s been an obsession throughout the decades. We also reached out to Sean Combs’ legal team for an interview and comment multiple times, but did not hear back.”
open image in galleryDiddy is currently serving a four-year prison sentence (AP)Jackson also dismissed the notion that the series was a result of his “disdain” for Combs, who was the subject of a diss track he released in 2006.
“It’s not personal,” he said, suggesting that had he not spoken out, the world might have thought “hip-hop is fine with his behaviours. There’s no one else being vocal.”
In a review for The Independent, Hannah Ewens said the docuseries “paints a portrait of a terrifying individual with far too much power”.
“People fall under Diddy’s spell, then get unnerved, then dismiss the worst of him as he dangles carrots to seduce them further, until they can’t see a way out from under his boot,” she said.
“It’s surprising just how many interviewees The Reckoning production team managed to secure, as we hear again and again how scary it is to speak out against someone this dangerous and this powerful. He’s in prison right now, which may be why people feel safe to open up, but this series alleges that the music industry gatekeeper is someone who can take revenge if you cross him.”
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