Michelle Obama Sets Surprise Netflix Documentary ‘Becoming’

The Obamas are expanding their Netflix footprint with new documentary Becoming. The film, which has been successfully kept under wraps for months, follows Michelle Obama as she travels across the country promoting her 2018 memoir of the same name. Becoming is slated to hit Netflix on Wednesday,  May 6.

Directed by cinematographer Nadia Hallgren (Trouble in the Water) in her feature directorial debut, Becoming picks up where Obama’s memoir leaves off by taking viewers behind the scenes of her 34-city book tour. According to Netflix, the doc will offer “an intimate look into the life of former First Lady Michelle Obama during a moment of profound change, not only for her personally but for the country she and her husband served over eight impactful years in the White House.”

Becoming was produced by the Obamas’ Higher Ground Production company, which has an exclusive deal with Netflix. The company’s Netflix debut, American Factory, was critically-acclaimed, and went on to win Best Documentary Feature at the 2020 Oscars. Last month, Higher Ground’s Crip Camp also debuted to rave reviews, with Decider’s Anna Menta hailing it as “a deeply moving history lesson.”

In a statement about the documentary, Obama reveals that her Becoming book tour was deeply informative. “Those months I spent traveling — meeting and connecting with people in cities across the globe — drove home the idea that what we share in common is deep and real and can’t be messed with,” says the former first lady. “In groups large and small, young and old, unique and united, we came together and shared stories, filling those spaces with our joys, worries, and dreams. We processed the past and imagined a better future. In talking about the idea of ‘becoming,’ many of us dared to say our hopes out loud.”

Obama goes on to say that she hopes Becoming on Netflix will be welcome distraction amid the coronavirus pandemic. “It’s hard these days to feel grounded or hopeful, but I hope that like me, you’ll find joy and a bit of respite in what Nadia has made,” she says of the film’s director. “She’s a rare talent, someone whose intelligence and compassion for others comes through in every frame she shoots. Most importantly, she understands the meaning of community, the power of community, and her work is magically able to depict it.”

Becoming premieres Wednesday, May 6 on Netflix. Watch the Becoming first look above.