Cable networks and streaming services will launch several specials and documentaries over the next few weeks highlighting the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, which industry executives say is still as relevant -- and debated -- as it was in 1969.
“Considering that after 50 years we’ve never been back to the moon is significant and deserves further questioning and exploration,” said Lucilla D’Agostino, chief creative officer for production company Big Fish Entertainment, which produced Science Channel’s limited documentary series Truth Behind the Moon Landing. “No one can argue that this was an amazing time in American history, but the considerable hurdles NASA needed to overcome to get man there by Kennedy’s deadline have fueled lunar conspiracies for decades.”
The six-part Truth Behind the Moon Landing series, which debuted this past Sunday (June 2), tackles the most popular conspiracy claims surrounding the iconic moon landing. The series seeks to apply scientific reasoning to the most popular conspiracies with commentary from former NASA Astronaut Leland Melvin, Iraq War veteran and former FBI agent Chad Jenkins and best-selling author, Mike Bara, according to network officials.
Other special programming commemorating the event include streaming service CuriosityStream’s June 13 premiere of Return to the Moon, an original documentary film which chronicles today’s global sprint to take man back to the moon and the innovative technology needed to colonize and explore beyond it, according to network officials.
On June 17, Curiosity Stream will also launch a summer block of moon landing-themed specials and documentaries on Monday nights, including Hack the Moon:Unsung Heroes of Apollo, which debuts June 24.
CNN on June 23 will debut director/producer Todd Douglas Miller‘s documentary Apollo 11, which captures the days and hours of the moon landing from newly-discovered 70mm footage and more than 11,000 hours of audio recordings, according to the network.
Smithsonian Channel will explore the moon landing through unique and rare access to Apollo artifacts from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum as part of a six-part series, Apollo’s Moon Shot, premiering June 16.
In addition on July 7, the network will air a one-hour documentary The Day We Walked On The Moon, which relieves the 24 hours surrounding the mission through revelations of the men and women who witnessed the historical event, said the network.
