‘Freefall’: A Kennedy Scion Probes the Mysterious Death of a Boeing Whistleblower

The True Story Behind 'Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing'

A still from Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing —Courtesy of NetflixFor Boeing, Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 live in infamy. The first plane crashed in October 2018 in the Java Sea shortly after taking off, and the second crashed in central Ethiopia only five months later. Both were Boeing 373 Max aircrafts, a newer and more fuel efficient model that had was certified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 2017. W…

‘Freefall’: A Kennedy Scion Probes the Mysterious Death of a Boeing Whistleblower

Rory Kennedy thought she was through with Boeing. The Oscar-nominated filmmaker behind “Last Days in Vietnam” and “Ghosts of Abu Ghraib” — and youngest child of late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel Kennedy — had spent years making “Downfall: The Case Against Boeing,” a 2022 documentary exploring the “profits over people” approach at the […]

Rory Kennedy's 'Freefall' reexamines Boeing after whistleblower's death

A follow-up to "Downfall: The Case Against Boeing," Kennedy's new documentary remains focused on the aerospace company but paints a broader portrait of the dangers of unfettered capitalism.

'Freefall: A Reckoning For Boeing' Recap - What Was The Real Reason Behind John Barnett’s Death?

Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing is a 2026 documentary film released on Netflix that is directed by longtime documentary filmmaker Rory Kennedy and is the sequel to her earlier film, Downfall: The Case against Boeing. While Kennedy had delved into the shocking reports and allegations against Boeing in her previous film, she now takes us for a deep-dive into the investigation efforts that followed, and especially the company’s treatment towards e…

‘Freefall’ director Rory Kennedy opens up about Boeing whistleblower John Barnett and reveals the two aircrafts she avoids at all costs

"When the focus became shareholder profits, people like John got in the way," Kennedy told Decider.

Freefall: A Reckoning for Boeing — Netflix reopens the case after John Barnett’s death

John Barnett spent thirty-two years on Boeing factory floors and left a paper trail no press office could unsay: photographs of metal shavings resting near flight-control wiring, records of emergency oxygen systems that testing suggested would not have delivered oxygen, memos about defects he says his managers preferred not to see. He was in the middle of a deposition in his own case against the company when he was found dead in a hotel parking …