Imagine Documentaries and Message Pictures have announced production of the “definitive documentary” on Whoopi Goldberg, a film that’s said to expand on the Oscar winner’s autobiography Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother and Me. Filmmaker Geeta Gandbhir, who is nominated for two Academy Awards this year, will direct.
The documentary will be told in “Goldberg’s own words and drawing from an extraordinary trove of archival tapes, performance footage, and personal materials,” according to a release. “The film offers an intimate look into the life of Goldberg née Caryn Elaine Johnson, the private, introverted, and deeply observant woman behind the audacious, boundary-breaking legend.”
The release continues, “Tracing Goldberg’s rise along with unadorned, observational verité of her today, through a window into her world never before granted. In the documentary, Goldberg takes us behind the scenes as she reimagines her groundbreaking 1984 Broadway debut one-woman show The Whoopi Monologues for Lincoln Center while balancing work with her producing partner of more than 30 years Tom Leonardis, developing new theater projects, spending time with her family and her new great-grandbaby, and building a quieter parallel life in Italy.”
Gandbhir earned the very rare distinction of earning Oscar nominations for two different films in the same year: The Perfect Neighbor (Netflix) competes on Sunday for Best Documentary Feature, while The Devil Is Busy (HBO), co-directed with Christalyn Hampton, is nominated for Best Documentary Short.
In a statement, Gandbhir said, “Whoopi Goldberg is a brilliant and groundbreaking storyteller who has shaped the landscape of entertainment for years. I, along with my partners Sam Pollard and Alisa Payne at Message Pictures, Whoopi’s long-time producing partner Tom Leonardis, President of Whoop, Inc, and Imagine Documentaries are honored to bring her story to life in this documentary.”
“Imagine is thrilled to reunite with my friend and longtime collaborator the exceptional Geeta Gandbhir, Tom Leonardis and Message Pictures on this extraordinary opportunity to celebrate the singular icon that is Whoopi Goldberg,” said Sara Bernstein, president of Imagine Documentaries. “The world needs more Whoopi!”
Along with Imagine Documentaries and Message Pictures, the project is being produced in association with One Hoe Productions, Goldberg’s company. The View host and EGOT winner is in pre-production on Sister Act 3, the latest installment in the hit franchise (as of 2024, that project was said to be in need of adjustments following the death of co-star Maggie Smith. “We will get it done. We will get it done. It’s just a shift,” Goldberg told Jimmy Fallon during an appearance on The Tonight Show).
Imagine Documentaries is the powerhouse behind Grammy-award winning Music by John Williams, directed by Laurent Bouzereau, Emmy-award winning Jim Henson Idea Man, directed by Ron Howard, and Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything, directed by Jackie Jesko, among many other acclaimed nonfiction films.