I, Tonya, which opened in New York and L.A. on December 8 and comes to theaters everywhere on January 5, tells the story of Tonya Harding and her alleged involvement in an assault against fellow figure skater Nancy Kerrigan in 1994. Though this controversy is one America has obsessed over for the past 23 years, I, Tonya is the first time the story has been told from Harding's own perspective. While it's a huge step toward understanding what really happened, in the film, Harding was portrayed by Margot Robbie.
Today, though, ABC announced that the real Harding will share a first-hand account of her life, including how she was involved in the attack, in a forthcoming television special called "Truth and Lies: The Tonya Harding Story."
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The special will be the sixth installment of ABC's Truth and Lies documentary series which premiered this year. During the two-hour event, Harding sits down with ABC News' Amy Robach to discuss her childhood, her infamous relationships with both her mother LaVona "Sandy" Golden and her ex-husband Jeff Gillooly, the attack, and what her life is like now, 23 years later. The special will also feature footage of the figure skater as a child and interviews with others close to the 1994 controversy, like news anchor Connie Chung; Dody Teachman, Harding’s former coach; and Norman Frink, the former district attorney who prosecuted Harding and Gillooly following the attack.
The stars of I, Tonya, including Robbie, Allison Janney, and Sebastian Stan, were also interviewed for the ABC program, and Harding will share her take on the recent film. It will be interesting to hear what she thought of the final product, especially since she was interviewed by the film's screenwriter Steven Rogers before I, Tonya was created and even hung out with the cast at its premiere.
"Truth and Lies: The Tonya Harding Story" airs on Thursday, January 11, 2018 at 9 p.m. ET. Finally this controversial woman is getting a say in how her own life story is told, and we definitely don't want to miss hearing her point-of-view for what might truly be the very first time.