50 Cent is clearing the air about his intentions behind producing Netflix’s explosive new docuseries Sean Combs: The Reckoning, insisting it wasn’t motivated by any personal feud with Diddy.
In a new conversation with GQ, 50 joined director Alexandria Stapleton to explain why he championed the four-part series and why it goes beyond Diddy’s federal case, instead tracing his rise, cultural impact, and eventual downfall. Despite their long-standing beef, 50 said he felt compelled to make the project because someone in hip-hop needed to speak up.
“If someone’s not saying something, then you would assume everybody in hip-hop is okay with what’s going on,” he told GQ’s Frazier Tharpe. He added that many artists prefer to “mind [their] business” due to the power Diddy held for so many years — leaving 50 feeling like he was the only one willing to take the risk.
The series dropped after Diddy’s legal team sent Netflix a cease-and-desist letter calling the documentary a “shameful hit piece,” but the platform pushed forward anyway. The doc features never-before-seen footage of Diddy in the days leading up to his arrest; he’s now serving a 50-month sentence at Fort Dix for violating the Mann Act.
Although many assumed the project was fueled by 50’s personal agenda, he clarified that Stapleton shaped the story — not him. The director began developing the series shortly after Cassie’s lawsuit became public, choosing to create a full, complex portrait of Diddy’s life rather than a crime-only narrative.
50 also pointed out that plenty of things he was aware of didn’t make it into the documentary since the team had to rely strictly on verified accounts and survivor testimony.
“There’s no place for me, I didn’t make the docuseries,” he said. “I got the best possible people to make one. That’s why you don’t feel anybody’s energy when watching.”
Still, when asked if he had an agenda, 50 didn’t miss the chance to joke about how different the series would’ve been if he had been the one driving the narrative. He also admitted nothing in the doc surprised him, as he already knew most of what ended up being shown.
“If it was [my agenda], I would’ve focused on the fact that you’re the only man in jail for transporting male sex workers,” 50 quipped.
