The Most Gripping Netflix Movie of 2024 is Based on the Biggest British Royal Scandal
This shocking story happened only a few years later, but that doesn't make the movie any less tense.
The British Royal Family is often a source of scandal. You can verify this thanks to The Crown by Peter Morgan or a simple attempt to Google the latest news from Buckingham Palace: you will see the recent "disappearance" of Kate Middleton and Prince Harry's tossing between the US and UK, and the false statement about the death of the King.
A recent movie released on Netflix depicts another high-profile story involving the son of Elizabeth II. The scandal reached its climax in 2019, when the prince gave an interview to the BBC and created a wave of criticism against him. It was the historic conversation that became the subject of study by director Philip Martin in the film Scoop.
The movie is based on a book by Sam McAlister, the same producer who finally persuaded Prince Andrew to break his silence.
What is Scoop About?
Sam McAlister is a BBC producer responsible for finding guests for Newsnight. It was she who negotiated the possibility of an exclusive interview with Amanda Thirsk, Prince Andrew's assistant.
It's 2019, Jeffrey Epstein is arrested again on child trafficking charges, and a month later he is found dead in his prison cell. The royal's relationship with the financier makes headlines again. As the BBC plots how to extract as much information as possible from the Queen's son, Buckingham Palace officials naively assume the interview will show Prince Andrew at his best.
Scoop is a Near-Documentary Account of One of Recent Years' Biggest Scandals
BBC behind-the-scenes footage is interspersed with scenes from inside the palace. While single mother Sam juggles a stressful job and raising her son, Andrew lashes out at the service workers. Surprisingly, neither the prince nor the servants of Buckingham Palace are aware of the light in which he presents himself during the interview.
Question after question, Emily Maitlis gives the interviewee every opportunity to show empathy for the victims, to show respect and to apologize. But Andrew seems to exist in a completely different world, where monarchs are untouchable and the testimony of women means nothing.
Although the events of the film took place literally five years ago and there is no intrigue, Scoop surprises with something else – a detailed depiction of the process of organizing an interview that has entered the annals of our time.