Peacock's 'The Making of a Bad Boy' Is a Sloppy Retelling of Sean 'Diddy' Combs' Sins
On Tuesday, the first of many shock docs detailing Sean "Diddy" Combs' descent from pop culture phenom to predator of unfathomably evil proportions dropped on Peacock. Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy tries to tell the sordid tale of the rapper, entrepreneur, and now, alleged serial rapist, abuser, and sex trafficker, via the testimony of a number of Combs' childhood friends, a psychologist, attorneys, former colleagues like Al B. Sure! and the bodyguard who apparently saw a lot, yet did very little to intervene, and, finally, some of his accusers. To its detriment, it takes its time.
The 90-minute film begins with Combs' upbringing—from the murder of his father, Melvin "Pretty Boy" Combs, to the rather unorthodox dynamics at home (first, in Harlem, then Mount Vernon). To the surprise of no one, former friends describe Combs as ambitious from the beginning. To some, he was known for being a part of a "dance and fashion crew" that would "battle" throughout New York City. To others, he was the first kid they knew who owned a Gucci watch. None, however, regard an adolescent and teenage Combs as a monster, though as one former acquaintance tells the viewer: "Monsters get made." Frankly, not only does the documentary fail in threading that needle, but any attempt to do so now would be utterly fruitless given an overwhelming share of public sympathy ceased in May 2024 when CNN published horrific surveillance footage showing Combs brutalizing his then-girlfriend, Cassandra "Cassie" Ventura, in a hotel hallway in 2016.
Since then, the breadth of damage Combs has done for decades has already been laid bare in a shocking September 2024 federal indictment that included allegations that Combs operated a “criminal enterprise” that thrived not only on the threats, abuse, and coercion of women and scores of others, but sex-trafficking, kidnapping and forced labor, and lawsuits that have reached double-digits. With every new allegation (from Combs' "freak-offs" to his repeated rape of children), and mere months away from his trial, it's unclear who—apart from the film's team—actually gives a damn how a monster gets made.
To the Hollywood Reporter, the producer of Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy said he hoped it served as an "origin story" for Combs. “By zooming out and by taking a more psychological approach, a sociological approach, it felt like we could say something a little bit bigger by presenting that information," Ari Mark explained. Ah yes, because society has so much to show for psychoanalyzing men accused of evil...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv0A5zqv0SE
The film also includes the City College stampede in 1991 that took place during a charity basketball headlined by Combs, and his dogged pursuit of deceased ex-wife, Kim Porter, who was then the wife of his colleague, Albert "Al B. Sure!" Joseph Brown III. Notably, any of Combs' alleged abuse of Porter is reduced to rumor and Brown III alludes to the allegations that his ex knew more about Combs' criminal activity than she let on and that foul play was present in her death, but doesn't offer much more. More frustrating is Combs' bodyguard of fourteen years, Gene Deal, and his recollection that he'd long suspected Porter was being "roughed up" by Combs, citing a hospital visit. Inexplicably, the film then abandons the allegation and turns its attention back to Comb's career trajectory.
By the time Combs' alleged history of sexual violence is introduced, the film is halfway through. Though some accusations are detailed, one accuser appears anonymously to share her firsthand account of rape. The woman, who filed a suit against Combs in October 2024, claimed she met Combs when he showed up with several other people at the apartment of a man she had met in Oakland, California. Prior to that night, she'd only ever been introduced to Combs via the unidentified man on FaceTime, recalling that she wasn't "impressed" by Combs and vocalized suspicions that he had "something to do with the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur.” In response, Combs allegedly said the woman would “pay” for the remark.
One month later, when Combs unexpectedly showed up at the man's apartment with multiple others, including Kristina Khorram, his chief of staff, she said he raped her at knifepoint with a remote control. She also alleged that Khorram threatened to take her away that night, and told her that “they could ship me off and sell me to anyone in the world." Ariel Mitchell-Kidd, the woman's attorney, also appeared in the documentary and further claimed that the man her client was with was a “scouter” for Combs.
"This documentary recycles and perpetuates the same lies and conspiracy theories that have been slung against Mr. Combs for months," Combs' attorney said of the film in a statement to People. "It is disappointing to see NBC and Peacock rolling in the same mud as unethical tabloid reporters. By providing a platform for proven liars and opportunists to make false criminal accusations, the documentary is irresponsible journalism of the worst kind." I wouldn't call it irresponsible journalism, but I wouldn't call it illuminatory either.
This week, Combs was named in another suit that alleged he had raped a 16-year-old high school student in 2000. The unnamed woman claimed Combs offered her a ride home from the New York City apartment where she was babysitting. When Combs didn't drop her at her home, the woman said she became alarmed. In response, she said Combs offered her a drink to "calm her down," but caused her to feel "groggy" and "unsteady." She then alleged that she was taken to another location by Combs and two of his employees before he raped her. Again, Combs has denied the allegations via his attorneys.
Currently, Combs has been named as a defendant in over 30 lawsuits accusing him of sexual misconduct in multiple states. He continues to seek release from incarceration at New York’s Metropolitan Detention Center on bail. His trial is set to begin in May.
In the meantime, The Fall, a four-part Max series on Combs' allegations is slated for release later this month. Here's hoping that one will be a bit more than a half-baked villain origin story...