BEING SERENA, AN INTIMATE DOCUMENTARY SERIES ABOUT TENNIS SUPERSTAR SERENA WILLIAMS

BEING SERENA is a five-part documentary series chronicling tennis icon Serena Williams at a pivotal moment in her personal and professional life. Being Serena debuts two episodes back-to-back Monday, 29 October at 10pm, exclusively on HBO (Astro Ch 411 / 431 HD). New episodes premiere on subsequent Mondays at the same time. The series will also be available on HBO On Demand (via Astro Go).

Being Serena will give viewers unprecedented access to Williams during her pregnancy, new motherhood and marriage, while documenting her journey back to supremacy on the court. Viewers will experience her life from every angle as the intimate first-person show delves into her landmark career, family life and expanding role as a businesswoman and investor in the worlds of tech, fashion, fitness and philanthropy.

Episodic synopses:

Episode #1

Debut: Monday, 29 October at 10pm on HBO

Serena Williams discovers she is pregnant before capturing her 23rd Grand Slam singles title at the 2017 Australian Open. From there, her world takes a dramatic turn as she puts competitive tennis aside in the months leading up to the birth of her first child.

Episode #2

Debut: Monday, 29 October at 10.25pm on HBO

Serena Williams gives birth to her daughter after an emergency C-section and reveals in gripping detail the life-threatening complications that followed her delivery. Seven weeks later, she returns to the practice court and slowly begins her comeback

Episode #3

Debut: Monday, 5 November at 10pm on HBO

Serena Williams marries Alexis Ohanian in New Orleans. She subsequently returns to the tennis court to play an exhibition match in Abu Dhabi and joins the U.S. Fed Cup team in North Carolina.

Episode #4

Debut: Monday, 5 November at 10.30pm on HBO

Superstar Serena Williams plays in her first tournaments since giving birth to her daughter, continuing to adjust to life as a mother.

Episode #5 (series finale)

Debut: Monday, 12 November at 10pm on HBO

With the French Open approaching, Serena Williams’ training intensifies in Europe as she continues to navigate the challenge of balancing tennis and her new family.

Serena Williams, 36, is one of the most dominant forces tennis has ever seen, with 39 Grand Slam titles, four Olympic Gold Medals and the most women’s singles match victories in Grand Slam history. Her supremacy on the court earned her Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year honours in 2015 and made her a four-time winner of the Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year, first in 2002 and most recently in 2015.

In January 2017, Williams bested her sister Venus in the final match of the Australian Open, marking her seventh time winning that singles event. Four months after her historic victory, Williams revealed that she and her fiancé, Alexis Ohanian, were expecting their first child, confirming that she was eight weeks pregnant when she won her 23rd Grand Slam singles title. 

On September 1, Williams gave birth to her daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr. Williams and Ohanian wed soon after in a stunning ceremony before family and friends in New Orleans on November 16.

Being Serina is executive produced by Mark Shapiro, Michael Antinoro and Will Staeger. For HBO: executive producers Peter Nelson and Rick Bernstein. coordinating producer, Johnson McKelvy; supervising producers, David Chamberlin and Bentley Weiner (HBO); senior producer Peter Rogaris; senior producer/editor Matt O’Connor; producer, Aaron Cohen; director of photography, Peter Franchella; original score by Miles Hankins.

The first two episodes of Being Serina debuts back-to-back Monday, 29 October at 10pm, exclusively on HBO (Astro Ch 411 / 431 HD). New episodes premiere on subsequent Mondays at the same time. The series will also be available on HBO On Demand (via Astro Go).

[CREDIT: HBO]