The musical performances scheduled to take place at Sunday night’s premiere of Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery have been canceled as Disney — parent company of the doc’s distributor, ABC News Studios — continues to deal with the fallout from last week’s suspension of Jimmy Kimmel.
“While the previously scheduled musical performances will not take place, we invite you to stay for a reception following the screening to celebrate the documentary,” organizers said in a statement Sunday afternoon.
At the premiere, Lilith Fair co-founder Sarah McLachlan, who also appears in the documentary, introduced the film ahead of the screening. She announced that the performances were canceled in a move of solidarity to support free speech.
McLachlan began her remarks by noting that she struggled with what to say.
“It’s a gift for all of us to see [this film], but also I’ve grappled with being here tonight and around what to say about the present situation that we are all faced with, the stark contraction to the many advances we’ve made watching the insidious erosion of women’s rights, of trans and queer rights, the muzzling of free speech,” McLachlan said. “I think we’re all fearful for what comes next, and none of us know, but what I do know is that I have to keep pushing forward as an artist, as a woman to find a way through, and though I don’t begin to know what the answer is, I believe we all need to work towards a softening to let in the possibility of a better way, because I see music as a bridge to our shared humanity, to finding common ground.”
She continued: “If Lilith taught me anything, it taught me there is a great strength in coming together to lift each other up instead of tearing each other down. So I really hope this documentary inspires everyone to continue to try and create positive change in your communities, to keep lifting each other up, keep championing the causes you believe in with kindness and empathy because ultimately we’re all in this together.”
Toward the end of her remarks, she broke the news about the performances being canceled.
“I know you’re expecting a performance tonight, and I’m so grateful to all of you for coming, and I apologize if this is disappointing, but we have collectively decided not to perform but instead to stand in solidarity in support of free speech,” McLachlan said, receiving loud applause in support. She added, “Thank you for your understanding.”
While the invitation to the event did not specify who was planning to perform — it teased only that “special surprise performances” were scheduled — a source tells The Hollywood Reporter that McLachlan and Jewel were the artists set to take the stage, along with another surprise guest. THR has reached out to reps for the event for more information. Puck’s Matt Belloni reported that Olivia Rodrigo was the surprise guest set. Rodrigo appears in the final moments of the documentary in an interview segment during which she praised the Lilith Fair artists as her “North stars.”
Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery retraces the iconic music festival that went on tour in the late 1990s and featured female solo acts and bands. A portion of the 1-hour, 39-minute documentary was dedicated to how the artists faced protests, backlash and even a free speech fight during stops of the tour. While in Houston, Texas, organizers had partnered with Planned Parenthood to set up a booth on the venue grounds with reps handing out condoms. Conservative pro-life groups criticized the move as did venue officials by attempting to ban the organization from participating. Joan Osborne explained that Planned Parenthood was eventually allowed in but artists were prohibited from discussing or promoting the organization during their sets. Osborne resisted, saying she didn’t enter into such an agreement, so she wore a Planned Parenthood t-shirt.
Before Sunday’s screening, a slide noted that ABC News Studios and Hulu support the Downtown Women’s Center, which helps homeless women and gender diverse individuals; LGBTQ+ advocacy group PFLAG; and the Geena Davis Institute, which works to improve representations of women and girls in media. QR codes for each organization were displayed for moviegoers to find out more.
Also in the audience at the event, taking place at The Ford in Los Angeles, are singer Lisa Loeb, actor-comedian Mae Martin and actor Charlie Barnett. Meanwhile, the event hosted a red carpet ahead of the screening, but it did not include any members of the press.
The news comes as Disney continues to deal with the fallout from the suspension of Kimmel following the ABC late-night host’s remarks about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
After station owners Nexstar and Sinclair said they would not be airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! in the wake of those comments, Disney made the decision to suspend Kimmel indefinitely. The company has faced backlash from Hollywood A-listers, current and veteran late-night hosts, politicians and the public for its decision, with many accusing Disney of bowing to pressure from the Trump administration.
Alli Pankiw directed the doc. Dan Levy is a producer on the film, and Diane Sawyer is executive producer. All three, along with McLachlan, were on hand at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month for the film’s premiere.
The documentary was released Sunday on Hulu and Disney+.
Stacey Wilson Hunt contributed to this report.
