Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson is telling her story.
Thirteen years after she entered the public eye Thompson is sharing the ups and downs of her childhood in a new Lifetime biopic titled, I Was Honey Boo Boo. In PEOPLE’s exclusive first look at the TV movie, the reality star narrates a portrayal of her rise to fame as her personal life crumbled.
“What do you like about pageants?” a casting director asks at the start of the trailer.
“Winning,” Alana, who is played by Vale Cooper, replies. “A dolla makes me holla honey boo boo child!”
Thompson herself then declares: “With that one line, I became America’s favorite redneck little girl. I’m Alana Thompson. You may know me as Honey Boo Boo.”
Related: Alana ‘Honey Boo Boo’ Thompson Reflects on the ‘Darker Side of Child Stardom’ in New Lifetime Film Based on Her Life (Exclusive)
Lifetime
Mama June and Honey Boo Boo in the Lifetime biopic
In 2012, 6-year-old Thompson appeared on TLC’s Toddlers and Tiaras. People quickly developed an interest in the beauty queen’s one-liners and big personality, and her path to stardom began. Now 19 and in college, Thompson is opening up about what went on behind closed doors, including her tumultuous relationship with her mother, “Mama June” Shannon.
The trailer gives a preview of the pressures Mama June put on her young daughter, telling her to show more skin and encouraging public exposure through their show Here Comes Honey Boo Boo.
“Mama’s little money maker,” June (Chelsea Larkin) quips, putting her intentions on display. “We about to be rolling in it.”
Related: Where Is Honey Boo Boo Now? A Look at the Former Pageant Queen’s Life 8 Years Since Her TLC Series Ended
Lifetime
Honey Boo Boo’s family in the Lifetime biopic
Things quickly go wrong, however, when Thompson’s older sister, Lauryn “Pumpkin” Efird (Georgia Small) discovers that June “spent all the Honey Boo Boo money.”
“$10,000 an episode, just gone,” she shouts.
As the trailer comes to an end, Thompson reveals the harsh truth of her upbringing: “It was always the same thing. I wanted mama, but her love was only transactional.”
“For the first time, I feel free,” she concludes.
Lifetime
Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson
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Fans have followed Thompson and her family’s journey for several years, most recently through their WE tv show, Mama June: Family Crisis. Last season, viewers saw Thompson and her mother go head-to-head after Shannon confessed to taking funds out of the trust where parents of child stars are legally required to deposit a percentage of their earnings.
Efird, who took legal custody of Thompson in 2022 after Shannon’s multiple drug-related arrests, claimed in a confessional that their mom intentionally deposited “the bare minimum” she was “legally” required to deposit and “then pocketed the rest.”
Breaking down in tears, Thompson realized that she couldn’t use the account to pay her college tuition like she planned, telling Shannon, “You don’t really give a f— that you took our money, that’s the real problem here. That’s the problem.”
I Was Honey Boo Boo premieres Saturday, May 17 at 8 p.m. ET on Lifetime.
Read the original article on People
