Ken Burns cut 'on-the-nose' material from 'The American Revolution' and is holding back Obama interviews

Speaking at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in August 2026, Ken Burns said he cut material from 'The American Revolution' that felt too 'on-the-nose' in the Trump era and is sitting on a trove of Barack Obama interviews rather than rushing them out. Burns resists imposing contemporary political arguments onto the past, preferring audiences to discover historical echoes themselves (Variety, 14 August 2026).