Overview

• Canceled: The Paula Deen Story had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 6.
• Director Billy Corben features extensive on-camera interviews with Deen and her sons, saying his goal is to provide context rather than engineer a comeback.
• The documentary revisits the 2013 deposition in a lawsuit filed by former manager Lisa Jackson, which led to Deen’s firing by Food Network and major commercial losses before the case was dismissed after a settlement.
• Deen ties her past use of a racial slur to recounting a 1987 bank robbery, and her attorney Bill Glass argues in the film that people who understand the context should not take issue with her answer.
• The film includes perspectives from figures such as Michael W. Twitty and draws early critiques that question how deeply it interrogates the racial and cultural issues it raises, while also revisiting Deen’s feud with Anthony Bourdain.