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Tell Them You Love Me is a Sky documentary that became a huge hit on Netflix, and explores the legally precarious issue of consent between a professor and a disabled man. Nick August-Perna spent two years building trust to film a story first discovered in a New York Times Magazine article. The documentary captivated audiences with its fascinating and ethically complex narrative.

Tell Them You Love Me is a documentary film originally made for Sky in the UK by filmmaker Nick August-Perna, but it wasn't until its arrival on Netflix that the movie became a watercooler event. Debuting June 14, 2024, the film quickly shot up to the top 10 most-watched movies on Netflix, remaining in the first or second spot for more than 10 days. The ethically complex documentary explores the issue of consent between Rutgers professor Anna Stubblefield and the man she falls in love with, Derrick Johnson, who also happens to...

Quick Links What Is Tell Them You Love Me About? Is Tell Them You Love Me Based on a True Story? Where Is Anna Stubblefield Today?

Netflix is no stranger to impactful documentaries, and the latest in its repertoire is Tell Them You Love Me. Since its release on June 14, the true-crime documentary has caused quite a stir, especially in regard to consent. Tell Them You Love Me is a complicated narrative, chronicling the controversial true relationship between a former white professor of Philosophy, Anna Stubblefield, and a nonverbal African-American man with cerebral palsy, Derrick Johnson.

Tell Them You Love Me is directed by Nick August-Perna and executive produced by Louis Theroux and Arron Fellows. Spanning almost two hours, the documentary focuses on several sensitive themes, including disability, autonomous communication, power dynamics, ethical responsibility, and race. Despite the relationship between Stubblefield and Johnson initially beginning as an attempt to help the latter express himself,...