Lizzo’s documentary Love Lizzo featured five minutes of a few of her back up dancers talking candidly about what it’s like to be plus sized in the dance industry. The dancers later alleged that this footage was used in the documentary without their consent.
In the footage, one dancer says emotionally, “You can’t let nobody see you sweat,” while others nod and wipe tears from their eyes. “You have to be three times better than. It’s not two times. It’s three times. You know what I mean?”
Subsequently, the dancers raised concerns about the private footage being incorporated into the 2022 HBO Max documentary. To their dismay, the dancers alleged that this intimate content was included without their awareness or consent.
In a communication dated January 17, the manager representing the dancers conveyed their discontent to Alan Brunswick, who serves as an attorney for the co-producer Boardwalk Pictures.
“After seeing all of the videos, I’m sure you realize how sensitive and private the dialogue was for the talent involved,” the dancers’ manager, Slay Smiles, wrote in an email reviewed by The Times. “This was supposed to be a safe space to express and share with the Principal talent [Lizzo], so by sharing this unauthorized footage to the public without their approval/permissions, has truly exploited these women and violated the emotional safety they had in those moments.”
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The crux of the matter revolves around the fact that the dance performers operated within a union contract for their involvement in the VMAs. However, when it came to the non-union behind-the-scenes footage that emerged in the Love Lizzo documentary, the dancers were not provided with any formal contract or agreement.
Alan Brunswick, the attorney representing the co-producer Boardwalk Pictures, shared with The Times that “They all knew the cameras were there. I don’t think the documentary was even contemplated at that point.”
After one of the dancers enlisted legal representation to advocate for their concerns, a series of confidential settlements were reached in February involving Boardwalk Pictures and other involved parties. As part of these settlements, the dancers relinquished their rights to the contested footage. In exchange, they received compensation for their participation in the documentary.
