Why Martha Stewart Can't Stand Her Own Netflix Documentary

Martha Stewart is considered an icon in the lifestyle industry. She has built a successful career as a businesswoman, a celebrated author, and a charismatic television host. However, not everyone knows about her struggles, so Netflix teamed up with the popular TV personality to release a documentary titled "Martha" to give fans a closer look into her life. However, it seems Stewart is not happy with how the documentary showcased her life and slammed the makers for portraying her as a "lonely, old lady."

Although the documentary features a lot of information that is not known to the public, Stewart believes that director RJ Cutler did not make good use of the plethora of information he had access to. Moreover, the television personality didn't shy away from mentioning how "shocking" it was for her to see some of the sequences featured in the last few moments of the film. "It was just shocking. Those last scenes with me looking like a lonely old lady walking hunched over in the garden? Boy, I told him to get rid of those. And he refused. I hate those last scenes. Hate them," Stewart told The New York Times.

Another aspect of the documentary that annoyed Stewart was Cutler's choice of music. In the same interview, the 83-year-old author noted that she wanted Cutler to use "rap music" from her friend Snoop Dogg or Dr. Dre in the film. However, what she got was exactly the opposite. "I said, 'I want that music.' And then he gets some lousy classical score in there, which has nothing to do with me," Stewart told NYT.

It doesn't come as a shock that Martha Stewart is frustrated about how Netflix and the makers have gone forward with the documentary. According to her, the film leaves several things out and primarily focuses on a part of her life that she does not consider crucial. Yes, she is talking about the 2004 trial that saw her getting convicted on charges related to fraud in the ImClone stock trading case. For the uninitiated, Stewart went to trial for the aforementioned trading case and was indicted on nine counts. It ran for six weeks and ended with a guilty verdict. As a result, Stewart was sent to prison for five months. The TV host believes Cutler could have focused less on the trial and more on the things she loves, including her granddaughters. "There's not even a mention [of my granddaughters]. And these grandchildren are utterly fantastic," Stewart told The New York Times.

Despite Stewart being angry about her documentary, director RJ Cutler has made it clear that he is proud of the documentary and clapped back at the TV personality, telling NYT, "It's a movie, not a Wikipedia page."

As of writing this piece, most of the reviews for "Martha" have been positive, with critics praising Cutler for the film's direct approach. The documentary is currently available to stream on Netflix.