Showtime has released the first trailer for filmmaker Laura Poitras’ latest documentary, Risk, about the WikiLeaks organization and its enigmatic founder, Julian Assange.
Risk was reportedly filmed over a period of six years, including through the 2016 presidential election. Poitras — who won an Oscar in 2015 for her documentary Citizenfour, about NSA leaker Edward Snowden — was allowed unprecedented access to Assange, who has been living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012.
The trailer plays up the safety concerns of filming Assange during the 2016 election, during which WikiLeaks released tens of thousands of leaked emails from the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta.
“This is not the film I thought I was making,” Poitras says. “I thought I could ignore the contradictions. I thought they were not part of the story. I was wrong. They’re becoming the story.”
Risk will premiere on Showtime this summer, and will also get a small theatrical release from distributor Neon.
The film is executive produced by Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail.
Watch the trailer for Risk above.
Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum