Netflix buys Grateful Dead doc

Netflix has acquired The Other One: The Long, Strange Trip of Bob Weir, a feature doc about the eponymous Grateful Dead singer and guitarist.

The US streaming service has taken exclusive rights for the US and all international territories and will launch it across its footprint simultaneously on May 22 on the eve of a 50^th anniversary reunion concert in Chicago.

The Other One: The Long, Strange Trip of Bob Weir hails from producer and writer Mike Fleiss who counts reality series The Bachelor and horror movie Hostel among his credits, and Justin Kreutzmann, who made In the Attic with Pete Townshend & Friends.

The film debuted at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival and won the Audience Award at the 2014 San Francisco International Film Festival. It chronicles Weir’s journey from Palo Alto youth to global success as a member of the Grateful Dead. It has interviews with Weir as well as bandmates and fans, and archive footage of the group performing.

“Mike Fleiss was given unprecedented access to create an intimate and compelling film about one of the most prolific, respected and beloved musicians of our time,” said Lisa Nishimura, Netflix’s vice president of original documentary and comedy.  “We are proud to bring Bob’s story to his fans around the world on the eve of the Dead’s final shows at Soldier Field in Chicago.”