“It’s always because of the land.” Netflix is about to debut this documentary film to watch worldwide next month. Free Leonard Peltier is a true story documentary about one man and America. It’s also the story about one activist and the power of activism. Free Leonard Peltier premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival last year, and after touring around to other fests, it’s finally ready for release. Acclaimed directors Jesse Short Bull and David France revisit one of the most discredited convictions in modern America—the double life sentences handed down to Indian rights activist Leonard Peltier for the 1975 murder of two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation of South Dakota. The film chronicles occupations, arrests, demands, assassinations—and in the midst of it all, the story of Peltier, a one-time mechanic who joined the AIM movement to protect and advocate for his people and quickly found himself in a war. After nearly five decades in federal prison, Peltier’s sentence was commuted to home confinement in January 2025. Alas has conviction was not overturned. Learn more in this engaging & authentic documentary when it’s out to view.
Here’s the official trailer for David France & Jesse Short Bull’s doc Free Leonard Peltier, from YouTube:
This award-winning documentary film revisits the controversial conviction of American Indian Movement (AIM) activist Leonard Peltier after the 1975 Pine Ridge Reservation shootout that left two FBI agents dead. Using archival footage, contemporary interviews, and AI-assisted recreations, the film examines Peltier’s case within the broader history of AIM, Indigenous resistance, federal government’s campaign against the movement. After nearly five decades in federal prison, Peltier’s sentence was commuted to home confinement in January 2025. But his conviction was not overturned. Free Leonard Peltier is co-directed by filmmakers David France (of How to Survive a Plague, The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson, Welcome to Chechnya, How to Survive a Pandemic) & Jesse Short Bull (of Lakota Nation vs. United States) making their first film together. Produced by David France, Paul McGuire, Jhane Myers, N. Bird Runningwater. This initially premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival last year. Netflix debuts the Free Leonard Peltier doc streaming on Netflix globally starting October 12th, 2026 this fall. Look good?
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