# Beckham (TV series)
**Beckham** is a 2023 Netflix four-part limited documentary series about the English former footballer [David Beckham](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-beckham), directed by the Academy Award-winning filmmaker [Fisher Stevens](https://www.edgepedia.org/fisher-stevens) and produced by Studio 99 in association with Ventureland.[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/81223488) • [2](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/) Using never-before-seen footage, it follows Beckham's rise from humble beginnings to global football stardom and mixes personal archive with interviews with his family, friends and teammates.[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/81223488) • [3](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/fisher-stevens-david-beckham-skip-intro)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | 2023 Netflix limited series, four episodes, rated TV-MA[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/81223488) |
| Episodes | "The Kick" (about 1h 11m), "Seeing Red" (1h 6m), "Golden Balls" (1h 10m), "What Makes David Run" (1h 16m)[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/81223488) |
| Direction and production | Directed by Fisher Stevens; a Studio 99 production in association with Ventureland, produced by John Battsek, Nicola Howson, Fisher Stevens and Billie Shepherd[2](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/) • [4](https://www.televisionacademy.com/shows/beckham) |
| Executive producers | Former footballers David Gardner and Gary Neville[5](https://www.screenuk.org/title/beckham/) |
| Release | London premiere in Mayfair on October 3, 2023; on Netflix from around October 4, 2023[6](https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/david-beckham-takes-family-premiere-candid-new-netflix-documentary-about-his-2023-10-03/) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/beckham/s01) |
| Awards | Five Emmy nominations in 2024, including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series and one for editor Michael Harte[8](https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/beckham-netflix-docuseries-editor-michael-harte-interview-1235032594/) |
| Access | Unprecedented access to David, Victoria, his family, friends and teammates[2](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/) |
## Production and development
David Beckham said he had long planned to make a documentary about his life and timed the project to the tenth anniversary of his retirement; he also said he made it for his family rather than for himself, "for my kids, for the grandkids, for my mom and dad to look back on it".[3](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/fisher-stevens-david-beckham-skip-intro) Fisher Stevens, whose directing credits include *Palmer*, *And We Go Green* and *The Cove*, came to the project through a recommendation from [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://www.edgepedia.org/leonardo-dicaprio)'s circle and was shooting *Succession* when he received the call.[2](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/) • [3](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/fisher-stevens-david-beckham-skip-intro)
**The production team.** The series was made by Studio 99 in association with Ventureland, with the Academy Award and Emmy-winning producer John Battsek (*One Day in September*, *Searching for Sugar Man*, *Winter on Fire*) producing alongside Nicola Howson and Billie Shepherd, and David Gardner and [Gary Neville](https://www.edgepedia.org/gary-neville) executive producing.[2](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/) • [4](https://www.televisionacademy.com/shows/beckham) • [5](https://www.screenuk.org/title/beckham/) Studio 99 describes the result as an intimate portrait of a man as well as a chronicle of late-modern sports and celebrity culture.[2](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/)
## Episodes and structure
The four episodes trace Beckham's career in phases. Episode 1, "The Kick", covers the 1996 goal that made his name; episode 2, "Seeing Red", covers the aftermath of the 1998 World Cup, in which Beckham faced depression, death threats and national harassment, and the arrival of his first child, Brooklyn; episode 3, "Golden Balls", covers his friction with Sir Alex Ferguson and the move to Real Madrid; and episode 4, "What Makes David Run", revisits his drama-filled tenures with Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, AC Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain.[1](https://www.netflix.com/title/81223488)
**Editing the story.** Editor Michael Harte restructured the series in post-production. The original cut was a film about football that used Beckham as a way into the sport; he flipped it so that football became a way into Beckham's life, family and relationships.[8](https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/beckham-netflix-docuseries-editor-michael-harte-interview-1235032594/) The series draws on roughly 40 years of archival footage of a man Harte called the most photographed person in the world, combined with never-before-seen personal archive and candid current-day moments.[8](https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/beckham-netflix-docuseries-editor-michael-harte-interview-1235032594/) • [3](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/fisher-stevens-david-beckham-skip-intro)
## Featured contributors
The production was granted unprecedented access to David, his wife Victoria, his family, his friends and his teammates, who appear as interviewees throughout.[2](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/) Beckham said the most emotional part of making the series was hearing his parents' perspective on events.[3](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/fisher-stevens-david-beckham-skip-intro) The interviews are combined with the personal archive and with footballing figures from across his career at Manchester United, Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, AC Milan, and Paris Saint-Germain.[3](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/fisher-stevens-david-beckham-skip-intro)
## Release and reception
The series premiered at an event in London's Mayfair on October 3, 2023, which Beckham turned into a family affair, attended with Victoria and their four children, and it began streaming on Netflix the following day.[6](https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/david-beckham-takes-family-premiere-candid-new-netflix-documentary-about-his-2023-10-03/) • [7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/beckham/s01) Beckham told Reuters he felt it was the right thing to do at the right time and that he wanted something for his family to look back on.[6](https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/david-beckham-takes-family-premiere-candid-new-netflix-documentary-about-his-2023-10-03/)
**Critical response.** The Rotten Tomatoes critics' consensus holds that Beckham's intimate access to an affable and charismatic subject makes for a delightful binge.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/beckham/s01) Reviewers were divided on its framing: some judged the roughly four-hour series a mostly hagiographic (uncritically flattering, like a saint's life story) portrait, writing that the series "barely scratches the surface of received myth and authorized story", while still finding it humanizing.[7](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/beckham/s01) Reuters noted that the documentary delves into much-reported controversies and difficulties in Beckham's public and personal lives alongside the previously unpublished footage.[6](https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/david-beckham-takes-family-premiere-candid-new-netflix-documentary-about-his-2023-10-03/)
## Recognition and afterlife
The series earned five Emmy nominations in 2024, including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series, with editor Michael Harte individually nominated for his editing.[8](https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/beckham-netflix-docuseries-editor-michael-harte-interview-1235032594/) • [4](https://www.televisionacademy.com/shows/beckham)
**The "working class" moment.** One widely shared sequence shows David Beckham pressing Victoria to admit that her father drove her to school in a Rolls-Royce, a playful challenge to her claims of a working-class upbringing; the moment was immediately memefied after release.[8](https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/beckham-netflix-docuseries-editor-michael-harte-interview-1235032594/)
## References
1. [Watch Beckham | Netflix Official Site](https://www.netflix.com/title/81223488)
2. [Beckham | Studio 99](https://studio99.com/films/beckham/)
3. ['BECKHAM' Director Fisher Stevens Got David Beckham to Open Up | Netflix Tudum](https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/fisher-stevens-david-beckham-skip-intro)
4. [Beckham | Emmy Awards and Nominations | Television Academy](https://www.televisionacademy.com/shows/beckham)
5. [Beckham | ScreenUK](https://www.screenuk.org/title/beckham/)
6. [David Beckham takes family to premiere of candid new Netflix documentary about his life | Reuters](https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/david-beckham-takes-family-premiere-candid-new-netflix-documentary-about-his-2023-10-03/)
7. [Beckham: Limited Series | Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/beckham/s01)
8. [Beckham: Netflix Docuseries Editor on Shaping David, Victoria's Story | IndieWire](https://www.indiewire.com/features/craft/beckham-netflix-docuseries-editor-michael-harte-interview-1235032594/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Unscripted, reality, and web-native series › Documentary, docudrama, and lifestyle series › Music, arts, and biographical docuseries*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license