A documentary that explores the tragic events of Astroworld 2021 is set to screen in theaters on Friday. However, attorneys representing Live Nation believe the release may negatively affect their legal battles in connection to the festival.
According to the Associated Press, the film—titled Concert Crush: The Travis Scott Festival Tragedy—will premiere this weekend in 11 Texas cities, including Austin, Dallas, and Travis Scott’s hometown of Houston. The 30-year-old rapper launched the annual event in 2018 near the former site of Six Flags AstroWorld. The two-day festival was canceled in 2020 due to the global pandemic, but returned to NRG Park in November 2021. However, Astroworld was cut short last year after a crowd surge near the main stage resulted in 10 deaths and countless injuries.
The Charlie Minn-directed documentary will include interviews from Astroworld concert-goers, and will explore the ways in which the tragedy may have been prevented. Minn told the Associated Press that the film isn’t a “hit piece toward Travis Scott,” but simply a way to share the victims’ stories.
“My job is to make the most truthful, honest, sincere documentary from the victim’s point of view …” Minn explained. “We need to know about these stories to prevent it from happening again.”
Those affected by the Astroworld tragedy have filed hundreds of lawsuits against Scott as well as Astroworld promoter Live Nation. The defendants are accused of “gross negligence” and “reckless disregard” for concert-goers’ safety. Attorneys for Live Nation have expressed objections toward the documentary’s release, stating it could “taint the jury pool.” Live Nation’s legal team also points out that a lawyer who filed one of the suits is a co-producer of Concert Crush, which may violate the case’s gag order.
“The involvement of plaintiffs’ lawyers in the film, and the publicity the filmmakers and producers are trying to generate for it raise significant issues about efforts to taint the jury pool,” Live Nation’s attorneys, Neal Manne and Kevin Yankowsky, wrote in a letter to state District Judge Kristen Hawkins.
The lawyers have not asked the judge to take any action in regards to the film. It remains unclear if Scott has seen the documentary.
“Mr. Scott remains focused on his philanthropic work in his hometown of Houston and in lower-income communities of color across the country, both of which are longstanding efforts,” his attorneys told AP.