Ron Howard’s Avedon doc coming to Netflix
July 31, 2026



Avedon, a new documentary from director Ron Howard which traces the life and legacy of the artist and photographer Richard Avedon, is coming to Netflix. The feature premiered at the 2026 Cannes Film Festival, and will arrives on the streaming platform later this year.

Over a career that spanned more than half a century, Avedon photographed movie stars and presidents, coal miners and drifters — lending his singular eye to the famous and the anonymous alike. By the time of his death, in 2004, he had become one of the most influential image-makers of the 20th century.


Drawing on access to his personal archives — never-before-seen stills, behind-the-lens footage, and new interviews with his closest collaborators — Howard’s film explores how his vision both reflected and reshaped visual language, and why even the most iconic image is only half the story.

“I’ve always been drawn to stories that help us better understand remarkable people,” Howard says. “Richard Avedon was an artist whose work continues to resonate not only because of the extraordinary images he created, but because of the humanity and curiosity behind them. At Imagine Documentaries, that’s exactly the kind of story we strive to tell, and this film gave us an extraordinary opportunity to explore Avedon’s legacy through an unparalleled archive and the voices of those who knew him best. We’re thrilled to continue our long-standing partnership with Netflix to share his story with audiences everywhere.”

Avedon is a production of Imagine Documentaries and Fifth Season, in association with the Richard Avedon Foundation.