WNBA Player Brittney Griner Partners with Disney, ESPN to Tell Her Jail Time in Russia

WNBA and US national basketball team player Brittney Griner reportedly partnered with Disney and ESPN to share her story of being imprisoned in Russia.

The partnership included a documentary, an exclusive interview with ABC, and a possible scripted series on her detainment in Russia.

In a statement she released to the New York Post, Griner said she is grateful for her current situation almost two years since she was liberated from Russian captivity, and has now been able to share her story with the world. Her wife Cherelle added in her own statement that Disney has been "supportive and caring" towards telling Griner's story.

Cherelle would serve as executive producer on all of the Disney umbrella's projects about Griner.

Rundown of Griner's Imprisonment

Griner, 33, was arrested in February 2022 at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport after authorities discovered vape canisters with cannabis oil in her luggage and was sentenced to nine years imprisonment in August 2022 after pleading guilty to drug charges. However, she was traded for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in a controversial prisoner swap in December last year.

Bout, known internationally as the "Merchant of Death," was serving 25 years in federal prison after he was convicted of conspiracy to kill Americans relating to the support of a Colombian terrorist organization.

The deal was struck amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Griner Calls to Liberate Americans from Russian Jails

The exchange outraged some Americans who argued that Washington officials, including President Joe Biden, gave up a high-value prize for a basketball star who was once ridiculed for saying the national anthem should not be played before sporting events.

Griner has since changed her stance on the matter.

WNBA Player Brittney Griner Partners with Disney, ESPN to Tell Her Jail Time in Russia

(Photo : Lance King/Getty Images)

Since her release, Griner has returned to the hard court in a series of exhibition games for Team USA against women's college basketball teams.

US nationals Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich remain in Russian prison. Griner told The Hill that, while she was grateful for her release, she also called for the release of the two and other Americans held in captivity in Vladimir Putin's Russia.