Inspiration4 is getting its own documentary. Netflix said Tuesday it would be releasing a five-part series on the mission, its first documentary to cover an event “in near real-time,” in five parts in September.
Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space will follow the first all-civilian Inspiration4 crew as they prepare for and undergo a three-day flight to low Earth orbit. The private flight is being funded by – surprise! – a billionaire: Jared Isaacman, the CEO and founder of payment processor Shift4 Payments. He will be joined by Hayley Arceneaux, a physician assistant at St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital and a pediatric bone cancer survivor; Christopher Sembroski, a Lockheed Martin engineer and Air Force veteran; and professor of geoscience Sian Proctor.
Isaacman has committed to donating $100 million to St. Jude’s out of his own funds, in addition to the public donation drive that was used to select Sian Proctor’s seat. As of March, the donation drive raised an addition $13 million for the children’s hospital.
The crew will travel to orbit in a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and a Falcon 9 rocket. The launch giant is customizing the Dragon especially for the mission, replacing a docking mechanism with a transparent glass dome out of which crewmembers will be able to take in what will likely be some pretty spectacular views. The dome will only be large enough to fit one passenger at a time, and ti’ll only open once the spacecraft has safely exited Earth’s atmosphere. (Stellar views are a relatively recent concern for launch developers and space passengers, mostly an effect of the burgeoning space tourism industry.)
The Netflix series will likely be the cherry on top of the massive media event that will be Inspiration4. The Netflix series will be directed by Jason Hehir, who previously headed The Last Dance, an ESPN documentary miniseries about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.
This September, four civilians will launch into space for a three-day trip orbiting Earth.
Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission To Space — the first Netflix documentary series to cover an event in near real-time — will premiere in five parts leading up to and following the mission. pic.twitter.com/8fLnxHCQNN
— Netflix (@netflix) August 3, 2021
