Tim Burton has been a constant in the hearts of general audiences thanks to hits like Edward Scissorhands and Nightmare Before Christmas. After a shaky 2010s, the 2020s have been much kinder to him with Wednesday and Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, and now the filmmaker’s getting a documentary charting his decades-long career.
Directed by Tara Wood, who previously helmed documentaries for Richard Linklater and Quentin Tarantino, the four-part Tim Burton: Life in the Line series promises never-before-seen footage and artwork from Burton’s past and present works, along with “untold stories of those who know him best.” Interviewees include longtime Burton alums Johnny Depp, Michael Keaton, and Helena Bonham Carter, and more recent additions like Jenna Ortega. As seen in the trailer, the series promises to explore everything, from his early time at Disney to Batman, Dumbo, and Wednesday.
Life in the Line is an independent production, and as such is built on a custom “direct-to-fan” platform that makes it “one of the largest independent streaming launches ever,” according to the press release. This method “gives audiences unprecedented access to Burton’s world — uncut, unfiltered, and overflowing with never-before-seen footage, interviews and artwork.” Wood later told Forbes the docuseries is “a project for the fans [and] artists, the freaks, the dreamers and the misunderstood — the ones who’ve always seen themselves in Tim’s world. It’s a love letter to Tim and to creative freedom.”
