'Jonestown: Terror in the Jungle' trailer: SundanceTV documentary to revisit the 1978 massacre on its 40th anniversary

'Jonestown: Terror in the Jungle', airing Saturday, November 17 and Sunday, November 18 at 9p ET, explores the shocking event which claimed the lives of more than 900 people – the single greatest loss of American civilian lives prior to 9/11 – in conjunction with the 40th Anniversary of the Jonestown massacre, which happened on November 18, 1978. 

Based on the best-selling book by investigative journalist Jeff Guinn, The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and Peoples Temple, the four-part docuseries paints a picture of Jim Jones’s transformation from charismatic preacher and champion of civil rights into an egomaniacal demagogue who led hundreds to take their own lives – both willingly and forcibly.

Featuring archival footage, including unreleased recordings and photographs taken by Peoples Temple members and previously classified FBI documents, “Jonestown: Terror in the Jungle” examines the full story of what transpired in the remote South American jungle and answers the questions how? And why? The definitive account also includes new interviews with survivors and Jones’s family members.

“Jonestown: Terror in the Jungle” is executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson of Appian Way (The Revenant, The Wolf of Wall Street), author Jeff Guinn, Stephen David of Stephen David Entertainment (“The Men Who Built America,” “The Making of the Mob”) and is directed by Shan Nicholson (Sugar Town, Rubble Kings).