Exclusive: ‘Simone Biles Rising’ Director Shines Light On Gymnast’s True Relationship With Husband Jonathan Owens, Public Conversation Around Black Hair And More

As the whole world prepares to tune in to the Olympics beginning this weekend, Simone Biles Rising director Katie Walsh will be in Paris following Biles and crafting the final chapters of her groundbreaking documentary.

‘Simone Biles Rising’ Director Katie Walsh Weighs In On How Olympics Will Impact Film’s Final Parts

BOSSIP’s Sr. Content Director Janeé Bolden spoke with Walsh ahead of the Olympics opening ceremony to discuss the first two parts of the film, currently streaming on Netflix.

“I will be there with Simone throughout the whole duration of the games so stay tuned for Part 2,” Walsh told BOSSIP. “I think that’s one of the most exciting parts about this series is that I don’t know how it ends.”

We’re on the edge of our seats for Simone and the rest of Team USA, but we also know Walsh faced tremendous pressure pushing to complete the first two parts to completion in time for the Games, while also keeping Biles’ mental health in mind at what promises to be yet big moment of scrutiny for the gymnastics champion.

“That’s been the plan from the beginning, to have two parts that come out before the Olympics and then the other two that come out after and showcase what happens at the Olympics,” Walsh said. “That was always the plan, but I felt a lot of responsibility in many aspects of the film, but in that particular aspect because I was acutely aware that this was going to come out right before the Olympics for Simone’s own mental health and just keeping the positive energy going for her as she heads into the Games. I’m very grateful that it’s all been positive and there’s been a lot of love for her and her whole family. That was one thing I thought about a lot, was the timing of when this movie comes out and how that relates to Simone and her personal journey.”

‘Simone Biles Rising’ Brings Attention To Isolation Of Tokyo Games Due To COVID 19

For those who haven’t seen the initial installments of Simone Biles Rising, the documentary opens with Biles at the Tokyo games, and draws attention to how, for the first time in her career as a gymnast, Biles was expected to compete without her loved ones in the stands. After beginning the Games favored to win gold, Biles ultimately chose not to compete in most exercises after experiencing a bad case of the twisties, a condition where a gymnast is experiencing a disconnect between their mind and body while in motion.

“So many of us watched the Olympics and her performance and other athletes performances in a vacuum,” Walsh recalled. “Like this is what’s happening on the floor and you don’t think about all of the things that are going on around that performance that helps support our athletes. If there’s one thing we learned during COVID, it was the importance of community and connection and family and having that support system and that has been a big part of Simone’s story and her journey — her family and how they supported her. So to lose that at such a big intense moment — this is a big competition — it’s the Olympics and to be stripped of all of that support that you’re so used to having is really a challenge. I don’t think if we knew it was going to be a challenge. I don’t know if we understood how big of a challenge it would be for these athletes and not just Simone, but all the athletes, so I really wanted to highlight that in the film, starting with Tokyo in and then sort of peeling back the layers of her personal experiences throughout her whole life and how they’ve built to that moment so that you’re no longer looking at it in a vacuum and just judging her on those couple of moments on the floor.”

Simone Biles Rising also gives a unique look at Biles’ life outside of gymnastics, at home with her husband Jonathan Owens, who offers his voice and perspective throughout the film. While Owens has drawn criticism in the past for saying he didn’t know who Biles was as a public figure before they began dating, the project shines a fresh light on the couple. In many ways, Owens demonstrates how his own experience as an athlete make him a perfect match for Biles, particularly because he can understand both the pressures of performing at a high level and also because he is no stranger to public scrutiny.

Director Of Simone Biles Doc Says Gymnast’s True Relationship With Husband ‘Shines’ In Film

“I think Jonathan coming into her life has been such a positive thing for her,” Walsh told BOSSIP. “Obviously they’re married, so they’re happy and in love and all of that, but from the perspective of another athlete, he really does get it. They can connect on so many levels, one of them being professional athlete to professional athlete, because it’s a small field of people that are competing at the top of their sport. We can all sympathize and try and understand what her experience is like but no one really truly understands except those that walk that same path, so Jonathan has been a great source of support and I think their true relationship really shines in the film.”

One of the most notable parts of Simone Biles Rising is the exploration of how Biles and other Olympic gymnasts, including Dominique Dawes, Gabby Douglas and Betty Okino have had to combat public commentary about their physical appearance, particularly their hair, no matter how well they’ve performed.

‘Simone Biles Rising’ Director Says She Was ‘Acutely Aware’ Film Was About Amazing Woman Of Color

“I’m acutely aware that this is not just a film about an amazing female athlete, but about an amazing woman of color who dominates her sport and I wanted to make sure that we honored that and accurately shared that experience for her through her and other voices in the film,” Walsh said. “I really leaned on Dr. Onnie Willis Rogers, Betty Okino and Dominique Dawes. So many women who have to walk that same walk and have an acute understanding of what it’s like to be a gymnast and also a woman of color and how those two experiences converge and become sort of part of Simone’s history.”

“Dr. Onnie Willis Rogers studies psychology and specifically focuses on adolescents and women of color adolescent young women of color, so she is able to really speak and share that experience,” Walsh continued. “She’s also an NCAA champion so she knows what it takes to be at the top of her sport. We discussed it together and really decided to use hair and the experience of Simone and all of the athletes, their experience with hair as a sort of like a a springboard into a larger conversation.”

Another important discussion explored in Simone Biles Rising, is the role of social media and how it has impacted Biles and other athlete’s mental health.

Simone Biles Documentary Serves As A Reminder That Athletes Are Human

“Social media plays such a big role in, not just the experience of pretty much any 20-year-old, or even 30 now at this point, and younger, but especially you know as a public figure who there is a lot of people commenting, whether they know you or not and whether they ought to have an opinion or not, and so I really wanted to bring in all of that outside noise as almost as if it was like a character in the movie and I wanted to show how Simone experiences that,” Walsh told BOSSIP about the way she incorporated both headlines and social media posts into the visual presentation of the film. “The premise of the film was to show, not just the way the outside world perceives Simone, but the way that Simone perceives the world around her. So we see moments where she’s on her phone and social media is just kind of filling up her space and then you see moments where she’s actually reading the tweets and you know I think it’s a reminder to everyone that what you say and the words you use mean something and have impact and Simone’s a human being, apart from being the greatest of all time, just this impermeable athlete on the field who is able to withstand so much intensity and pressure. She’s still a human being and those words mean something and they affect her and they affect her mental health. As we explore mental health and I wanted to explore the role that social media and just that media as a whole plays in that mental health for her.”

With the Paris Olympics finally beginning, we’re so excited to see what’s next for Simone Biles and the rest of Team USA. We’re also excited to see how Walsh captures Biles’ experience for the final two parts of the documentary.

“I hope that people who know gymnastics can love this film and I hope people that don’t know gymnastics can also love this film and we can all just have a greater appreciation for what Simone has done, whether she goes to this Olympics and wins all the medals or not,” Walsh told BOSSIP. “Her showing up and her being a part of this and putting herself back out there again is such an achievement and that’s what I really want to celebrate.”

The first two episodes of Simone Biles Rising are available on Netflix now.