The film about the Greens co-leader is now a full election cycle overdue.
Due for release two years ago, a contentious documentary on Green Party co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick has been delayed again, with the date pushed out another year.
The Spinoff can reveal the film will now be released following the 2026 election, after questions were put to Sky – which owns the television rights for the film. A spokesperson told The Spinoff the film was in post-production, but as it was election year, the decision had been made to postpone the release.
“Given the nature of the content (including that the subject of the documentary is now the co-leader of the Green Party) and the upcoming election, we’re mindful of broadcasting regulations and have decided that we will not schedule the documentary prior to the 2026 election.”
“We will confirm more details on the documentary and its airdate once it is complete,” the spokesperson said.
Directed by Charlotte Evans, the film, Being Chlöe, has been controversial as it secured $199,000 in NZ On Air funding in 2021 – and an additional $20,000 from the NZ Film Commission. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and the Act Party have publicly disapproved of the taxpayer funding for the film.
The film was originally set to be released after the 2023 election.
The film follows Swarbrick in her personal and work life in the lead up to the 2023 election, before she was the Green party’s co-leader. She was then third on the Greens list and the youngest MP in parliament. It has been billed as a follow up to the 2020 documentary OK Chlöe, which examined Swarbrick’s life in parliament, as well as her personal life and mental health.
Evans previously told the NZ Herald the film would be delivered in early 2026, while NZ On Air predicted it to be late 2025. The NZ Herald reported last year that a NZ On Air document showed there were staff concerns that providing funding for the film “may be perceived as an endorsement of a politician and/or political agenda,” however there was “significant” interest in the MP.
“Staff is reassured that as the narrative concludes with the election result, the film will be released after the 2023 election and will not be perceived to influence the result,” the Herald reported the document as revealing.
The documentary caught flak earlier this week from Act Party arts and culture spokesperson Todd Stephenson. He argued the “political moment” the film was seeking to capture of parliament’s then-youngest MP “has passed, young people have found new voices, and taxpayers are still waiting for a finished product”.
“If a taxpayer-funded documentary about a sitting MP appears during an election year, it’s reasonable to ask whether the film and its marketing should be treated as election advertising,” Stephenson said in a media release. “The alternative is delaying it again, which would leave taxpayers funding an outdated film about the 2023 election. Either way, taxpayers and viewers lose.”
Neither Swarbrick nor the Green Party have any editorial involvement in the film. “We have no control over this project,” a party spokesperson told The Spinoff.
