EXCLUSIVE: MSNBC Films will debut King of the Apocalypse, a documentary about Oath Keepers leader Stewart Rhodes, that will air at 9 p.m. ET on Feb. 2.
Rhodes was among the 1,500 January 6th defendants granted clemency by Donald Trump in one of his initial acts upon returning to the White House on Monday. Serving an 18-year sentence for seditious conspiracy, Rhodes’ sentence was commuted to time served.
Per MSNBC, the documentary traces Rhodes’ life “from little-known libertarian blogger to leader of the militant group the Oath Keepers,” offering a look into the right-wing militia movement. The project features previous interviews with Rhodes, and is told through the perspective of his son, Dakota Adams, and ex-wife, Tasha Adams. Dakota Adams, who broke from his father’s ideology narrates the documentary, and “sheds light on the ideology his father represents, how decades-old ideas have been made more mainstream and tailored to the political moment, and increasingly more ingrained in U.S. culture and politics,” per MSNBC.
The project is directed by Dan Vernon and produced by Ted Bourne. It was released in Europe via Sky Documentaries on Jan. 22.
The documentary was inspired by a September, 2020 article in The Atlantic by Mike Giglio, “A Pro-Trump Militant Group Has Recruited Thousands of Police, Soldiers, and Veterans.” Rhodes did not enter the Capitol on January 6, 2021, but was identified as a leader in the attack.
In a statement, Vernon said, “News about the Oath Keepers played out on the world stage, especially after Stewart Rhodes was arrested, but I wanted to tell the unheard and nuanced story behind this movement. This is more than a political narrative — it’s also a story about a father and son relationship, which unravels like a Shakespearian tragedy. It felt like our unique perspective was through Stewart Rhodes’s son, Dakota, who had been indoctrinated into his father’s movement for as long as he could remember.”
The project is a co-production of MSNBC Films, A Noble Beast, Sky and Sky Studios in association with NBC News Studios. Giglio is an executive producer. Rashida Jones, Rebecca Kutler and Amanda Spain are executive producers for MSNBC Films; Liz Cole, Molly O’Brien and Elizabeth Fischer are executive producers for NBC News Studios; Vesna Cudic is Executive Producer for Sky Studios; Bruce Fletcher and Tom Barry are Executive Producers for Sky UK.
