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Warning: Contains details of sexual violence��

A new documentary about��the murder of British backpacker Grace Millane��and��the trial of her killer Jesse Kempson��will include previously unseen CCTV footage from the night she died.�� ��

According to��The Hollywood Reporter, US-based film distributor Brainstorm Media has acquired the rights to��The Lie: The Murder of Grace Millane,��set to release in cinemas and on streaming in spring 2024 in the US.��

The film, from British director Helena Coan, will include never-before-seen interviews and CCTV footage of Millane’s Tinder date with Kempson, during which he strangled her to death and left her body in a suitcase in the Waitakere Ranges in West Auckland.��

The 21-year-old backpacker’s death made headlines throughout the world as Kempson’s trial revealed his history of violence towards women.��

He was found guilty of murder in 2019 after presenting a “rough sex” defence in court, details of which her family was forced to listen to. Kempson was sentenced to 17 years’ imprisonment without parole.��

Coan says Kempson’s defence, which boiled down to “she asked for it”, was the main reason she wanted to tell Millane’s story.��

“I’ve been in that position and probably every woman in the history of the world has been in that position, on a new date with someone that you don’t really know,” she says.��

“She was just a normal young woman who absolutely didn’t deserve what was about to happen to her.”��

The rough sex defence can potentially result in a reduced sentence in some cases - which means “men are getting away with the most heinous, manipulative, planned, pre-meditated crimes,” Coan says.��

“It’s scary to see how lawyers use this defence and how juries still buy into this idea, that a woman can consent to being strangled to death.”��

But as it was pointed out during the court case, it takes up to 10 minutes to strangle someone to death.��

A new documentary will explore what happened the night Grace Millane died.��

“That’s not pleasure. That’s murder.”��

The film was made with the blessing of Millane’s family and includes interviews with Detective Inspector Scott Beard, who was the lead investigator on the case.��

Beard told��Sky ��һ�ǿ�������last year, “Essentially the rough sex defence re-victimises that victim and their families - in a murder case, their families who are sitting in court.��

“The victim isn’t there to answer.”��

Sharing news of the film’s release on social media, Coan wrote, “I have never worked harder, been more challenged and been forever changed like I have with this film.��

“Making a film about someone’s daughter, sister, friend is not a responsibility I take lightly.”��

The documentary is produced by Matthew Metcalfe, who is based in New Zealand and known for his work on��The Dead Lands��and the upcoming��Never Look Away, directed by Kiwi actress Lucy Lawless.��

It’s not clear if or when the documentary will be available to view in New Zealand.��

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