God Save Texas

2024 American TV documentary series

Richard Linklater
Alex Stapleton
Iliana Sosa

Music byGraham ReynoldsCountry of originUnited StatesOriginal languages

English
Spanish

No. of episodes3ProductionExecutive producers

Richard Linklater
Alex Gibney
Peter Berg
Michael Lombardo
Stacey Offman
Richard Perello
Elizabeth Rogers
Lawrence Wright
Nancy Abraham
Lisa Heller

Producers

Nell Constantinople
Danielle Mynard
Meghan O'Hara

Cinematography

Brian Dawson
EJ Enríquez
Shane F. Kelly
Arlene Nelson
Judy Phu
Paul Raila
Graham Willoughby

Editors

Spencer Averick
Paul Greenhouse
Lorena Luciano
Rosella Tursi

Production companies

HBO Documentary Films
Jigsaw Productions
Film 44

Original releaseNetworkHBOReleaseFebruary 27 (2024-02-27) –
February 28, 2024 (2024-02-28)

God Save Texas is an 2024 American documentary series, directed by Richard Linklater, Alex Stapleton, and Iliana Sosa. It is inspired by the book God Save Texas: A Journey Into the Soul of the Lone Star State by Lawrence Wright.^[1] The series explores the past, present, and future of Texas.

It had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on January 23, 2024.^[2] It premiered February 27, 2024, on HBO.^[3]

Premise

Chronicling the past, present, and future of Texas, from the perspective of three directors. Following the prison industrial complex in Huntsville,^[4]^[5] the energy industry in Houston, and the humanity and healing following the 2019 El Paso shooting in El Paso.^[6]

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Original air date
1	"Hometown Prison"	Richard Linklater	February 27, 2024 (2024-02-27)
2	"The Price of Oil"	Alex Stapleton	February 28, 2024 (2024-02-28)
3	"La Frontera"	Iliana Sosa	February 28, 2024 (2024-02-28)

Production

In June 2014, it was announced God Save Texas was in development at HBO, with Lawrence Wright set to write, based upon his play Sonny’s Last Shot, and Lauren Shuler Donner set to executive produce.^[7]^[8]

In March 2022, it was announced the project was instead a documentary-series with Richard Linklater set to direct an episode, with Wright still attached as executive producer, and Alex Gibney set to executive produce.^[9] While directing the episode, Linklater went on a process of search and discovery, determining an excessive amount of his high school football teammates ended up incarcerated by the prison industrial complex in Texas.^[10]

Reception

Critical reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an 100% approval rating based on 5 critic reviews.^[11] On Metacritic, the series has a weighted average score of 84 out of 100, based on 4 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".^[12]

References

^ Carey, Matthew (February 16, 2024). "Watch Trailer For 'God Save Texas,' HBO Documentary Trilogy From Filmmakers Richard Linklater, Alex Stapleton, and Iliana Sosa". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
^ D'Alessandro, Anthony; Patten, Dominic (December 6, 2023). "Sundance Unveils Packed 2024 Lineup That Includes A.I., Pedro Pascal, Kristen Stewart, Satan, Devo & Steven Yeun". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 11, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ "What's New On Max This February". Warner Bros. Discovery. January 23, 2024. Archived from the original on January 24, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ "God Save Texas: Hometown Prison". Sundance Film Festival. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ Goldstein, Gregg (January 20, 2024). "Sundance: High-Profile Filmmakers Take Aim at U.S. Criminal 'Justice' System". Variety. Archived from the original on January 22, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ "God Save Texas: The Price of Oil & La Frontera". Sundance Film Festival. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ Andreeva, Nellie (June 6, 2014). "HBO Developing Texas Politics Drama From Lawrence Wright And Lauren Shuler Donner". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ Whittaker, Richard (June 17, 2014). "HBO Going Under the Dome for 'God Save Texas'". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ Barfield, Charles (March 18, 2022). "Richard Linklater Says He's Part Of A 3-Part "Texas Ills" Doc With Alex Gibney Coming To HBO This Summer". The Playlist. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ Gomez, Dessi (January 23, 2024). "Richard Linklater Discovered 'Inordinate Amount' of High School Peers in Prison While Filming Hometown Doc 'God Save Texas'". The Wrap. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 23, 2024.
^ "God Save Texas: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
^ "God Save Texas". Metacritic. Retrieved March 1, 2024.

External links

God Save Texas at IMDb

HBO documentaries

Former

1990s	Skinheads USA: Soldiers of the Race War (1993) Shock Video (1993) One Survivor Remembers (1995) Mumia Abu-Jamal: A Case For Reasonable Doubt? (1996) Paradise Lost (1996) Without Pity: A Film About Abilities (1996) 4 Little Girls (1997) City Dump: The Story of the 1951 CCNY Basketball Scandal (1998) Private Dicks: Men Exposed (1999)
2000s	Paradise Lost 2: Revelations (2000) The Iceman Confesses (2001) Just, Melvin: Just Evil (2001) Living Dolls: The Making of a Child Beauty Queen (2001) American Standoff (2002) Jim Brown: All-American (2002) Born Rich (2003) Capturing the Friedmans (2003) Thinking XXX (2004) Dare to Dream: The Story of the U.S. Women's Soccer Team (2005) All Aboard! Rosie's Family Cruise (2006) When the Levees Broke (2006) Autism: The Musical (2007) Friends of God: A Road Trip with Alexandra Pelosi (2007) I Am an Animal (2007) Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project (2007) Cat Dancers (2008) The One Percent (2008) Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired (2008) Boy Interrupted (2009) By the People: The Election of Barack Obama (2009) China's Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province (2009) Good Hair (2009) The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner (2009) The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant (2009) One Minute to Nine (2009) Reporter (2009) The Trials of Ted Haggard (2009) 12th & Delaware (2010) The Battle for Marjah (2010) A Small Act (2010)
2010s	Bobby Fischer Against the World (2011) Citizen USA: A 50 State Road Trip (2011) His Way (2011) Love Crimes of Kabul (2011) The Loving Story (2011) There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane (2011) 41 (2012) Crossfire Hurricane (2012) Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God (2012) Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2012) 50 Children: The Rescue Mission of Mr. and Mrs. Kraus (2013) An Apology to Elephants (2013) Casting By (2013) Fall to Grace (2013) Gideon's Army (2013) Life According to Sam (2013) Manhunt: The Search for Bin Laden (2013) Six by Sondheim (2013) Valentine Road (2013) Vice (2013–2018) Banksy Does New York (2014) Captivated: The Trials of Pamela Smart (2014) The Case Against 8 (2014) Foo Fighters: Sonic Highways (2014) Love Child (2014) Private Violence (2014) Saving My Tomorrow (2014) 3 1/2 Minutes, 10 Bullets (2015) Citizenfour (2015) The Diplomat (2015) Everything Is Copy (2015) A Girl in the River: The Price of Forgiveness (2015) Going Clear (2015) How to Dance in Ohio (2015) J. Cole: Road to Homecoming (2015) The Jinx (2015) Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck (2015) Sinatra: All or Nothing at All (2015) Thought Crimes: The Case of the Cannibal Cop (2015) Abortion: Stories Women Tell (2016) Brillo Box (3 ¢ Off) (2016) Class Divide (2016) Mariela Castro's March: Cuba's LGBT Revolution (2016) Nothing Left Unsaid: Gloria Vanderbilt & Anderson Cooper (2016) The Trans List (2016) Unlocking the Cage (2016) Baltimore Rising (2017) Becoming Warren Buffett (2017) Beware the Slenderman (2017) Bright Lights (2017) Cries from Syria (2017) The Defiant Ones (2017) Eagles of Death Metal: Nos Amis (Our Friends) (2017) If You're Not in the Obit, Eat Breakfast (2017) J. Cole: 4 Your Eyez Only (2017) Mommy Dead and Dearest (2017) The Newspaperman (2017) Rock and a Hard Place (2017) Solitary: Inside Red Onion State Prison (2017) Spielberg (2017) Traffic Stop (2017) Arthur Miller: Writer (2018) Atomic Homefront (2018) Axios (2018–2021) Believer (2018) The Final Year (2018) King in the Wilderness (2018) May It Last: A Portrait of the Avett Brothers (2018) The Number on Great-Grandpa's Arm (2018) The Price of Everything (2018) Robin Williams: Come Inside My Mind (2018) Swiped: Hooking Up in the Digital Age (2018) The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling (2018) At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal (2019) Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists (2019) The Case Against Adnan Syed (2019) I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth V. Michelle Carter (2019) Ice on Fire (2019) The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley (2019) Leaving Neverland (2019) Running with Beto (2019) United Skates (2019) What's My Name: Muhammad Ali (2019) The Apollo (2019) Wig (2019)
2020s	After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News (2020) McMillions (2020) Autism: The Sequel (2020) Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind (2020) Bully. Coward. Victim: The Story of Roy Cohn (2020) How To with John Wilson (2020–2023) I'll Be Gone in the Dark (2020) Welcome to Chechnya (2020) Showbiz Kids (2020) Stockton on My Mind (2020) The Weight of Gold (2020) The Swamp (2020) Yusuf Hawkins: Storm Over Brooklyn (2020) Agents of Chaos (2020) Wild Card: The Downfall of a Radio Loudmouth (2020) Siempre, Luis (2020) The Perfect Weapon (2020) 537 Votes (2020) The Soul of America (2020) Burning Ojai: Our Fire Story (2020) Transhood (2020) Crazy, Not Insane (2020) The Mystery Of D.B. Cooper (2020) Baby God (2020) The Vow (2020–2022) 40 Years a Prisoner (2020) Alabama Snake (2020) The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend A Broken Heart (2020) The Art of Political Murder (2020) Tiger (2021) Fake Famous (2021) Black Art: In the Absence of Light (2021) Painting with John (2021–2023) The Lady and the Dale (2021) Covid Diaries NYC (2021) Allen v. Farrow (2021) The Day Sports Stood Still (2021) Tina (2021) The Last Cruise (2021) Q: Into the Storm (2021) Exterminate All the Brutes (2021) Our Towns (2021) Pray, Obey, Kill (2021) The Crime of the Century (2021) Revolution Rent (2021) The Legend of the Underground (2021) Woodstock 99: Peace, Love, and Rage (2021) Catch and Kill: The Podcast Tapes (2021) Back on the Record with Bob Costas (2021–2022) Obama: In Pursuit of a More Perfect Union (2021) In the Same Breath (2021) Small Town News: KPVM Pahrump (2021) NYC Epicenters 9/11→2021½ (2021) Level Playing Field (2021) Nuclear Family (2021) Four Hours at the Capitol (2021) Dear Rider: The Jake Burton Story (2021) A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks (2021) Simple as Water (2021) Jagged (2021) Black and Missing (2021) DMX: Don't Try to Understand (2021) Life of Crime 1984-2020 (2021) Adrienne (2021) Listening to Kenny G (2021) The Forever Prisoner (2021) The Slow Hustle (2021) Mr. Saturday Night (2021) Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street (2021) The Murders at Starved Rock (2021) Juice Wrld: Into the Abyss (2021) Reopening Night (2021) Insecure: The End (2021) The Super Bob Einstein Movie (2021) Terry Bradshaw: Going Deep (2022) Icahn: The Restless Billionaire (2022) Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches (2022) Undercurrent: The Disappearance of Kim Wall (2022) Phoenix Rising (2022) How to Survive a Pandemic (2022) When We Were Bullies (2022) Tony Hawk: Until The Wheels Fall Off (2022) The Invisible Pilot (2022) Spring Awakening: Those You've Known (2022) George Carlin's American Dream (2022) The Janes (2022) Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes (2022) Endangered (2022) Mind Over Murder (2022) We Met in Virtual Reality (2022) Edge of the Earth (2022) The Princess (2022) Katrina Babies (2022) Escape From Kabul (2022) Hostages (2022) 38 at the Garden (2022) Mama's Boy (2022) Year One: A Political Odyssey (2022) A Tree of Life: The Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting (2022) Say Hey, Willie Mays! (2022) Master of Light (2022) Camilo: El Primer Tour De Mi Vida (2022) 2022 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony (2022) The Howard Stern Interview: Bruce Springsteen (2022) My So-Called High School Rank (2022) Unveiled: Surviving La Luz del Mundo (2022) Pelosi in the House (2022) Shaq (2022) Unveiled: Surviving La Luz del Mundo (2022) Branson (2022) Sex Diaries (2022) This Place Rules (2022) Game Theory with Bomani Jones (2022) All That Breathes (2023) All the Beauty and the Bloodshed (2023) Jason Isbell: Running with Our Eyes Closed (2023) Moonage Daydream (2023) 1000% Me: Growing Up Mixed (2023) Angel City (2023) Love to Love You, Donna Summer (2023) Being Mary Tyler Moore (2023) Burden of Proof (2023) How Do You Measure a Year? (2023) The Stroll (2023) Taylor Mac's 24-Decade History of Popular Music (2023) Rock Hudson: All That Heaven Allowed (2023) The Golden Boy (2023) Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York (2023) After the Bite (2023) BS High (2023) Telemarketers (2023) Savior Complex (2023) The Insurrectionist Next Door (2023) Navajo Police: Class 57 (2023) You Were My First Boyfriend (2023) Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God (2023) Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage, and Reckoning (2023) Time Bomb Y2K (2023) Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project (2024) God Save Texas (2024) A Revolution on Canvas (2024) The Truth vs. Alex Jones (2024) The Synanon Fix (2024)

Current and upcoming

Current	Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (since 1995) Hard Knocks (since 2001) The Shop (since 2018) 100 Foot Wave (since 2021) Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show (since 2024)
Upcoming	Stax: Soulsville U.S.A. (2024) Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (2024) The Larry David Story (TBA) Untitled Paul Reubens documentary (TBA) Seen & Heard (TBA) Eyes on the Prize docuseries (TBA) Untitled Ohio State University abuse scandal documentary (TBA)

HBO programming

Current and upcoming

Current

100 Foot Wave (since 2021)
30 Coins (since 2021)
Euphoria (since 2019)
The Gilded Age (since 2022)
Hard Knocks (since 2001)
House of the Dragon (since 2022)
Industry (since 2020)
Jerrod Carmichael Reality Show (since 2024)
The Last of Us (since 2023)
Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (since 2014)
My Brilliant Friend (since 2018)
Rain Dogs (since 2023)
Random Acts of Flyness (since 2018)
Real Time with Bill Maher (since 2003)
The Rehearsal (since 2022)
The Righteous Gemstones (since 2019)
Somebody Somewhere (since 2022)
The Sympathizer (since 2024)
True Detective (since 2014)
We're Here (since 2020)
The White Lotus (since 2021)

Upcoming

The Franchise (TBA)
Get Millie Black (TBA)
Untitled task force project (TBA)

Former

Series

1970s debuts	HBO World Championship Boxing HBO Sports Bowling Inside the NFL On Location Race for the Pennant Standing Room Only ("Vanities") Tennis on HBO Time Was
1980s debuts	1st & Ten The Adventures of Tom Sawyer America Undercover ("Autopsy", "Real Sex" and "Taxicab Confessions") Babar Braingames Encyclopedia Encyclopedia Brown The Ghost of Faffner Hall The Hitchhiker HBO Storybook Musicals The Kids in the Hall Maximum Security Not Necessarily the News One Night Stand Philip Marlowe, Private Eye The Ray Bradbury Theater Seabert The StoryTeller Tales from the Crypt Tales of Little Women Video Jukebox The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
1990s debuts	The Adventures of Paddington Bear The Adventures of Tintin Arliss The Baby-Sitters Club Boxing After Dark The Chris Rock Show The Country Mouse and the City Mouse Adventures Crashbox Def Comedy Jam Dennis Miller Live Dream On George and Martha Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child HBO Comedy Half-Hour Hotel Room The Larry Sanders Show Lifestories: Families in Crisis A Little Curious The Little Lulu Show Mr. Show with Bob and David The Neverending Story Oz Perversions of Science Pippi Longstocking Rainbow Fish Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel Reverb Saban's Adventures of Pinocchio Sex and the City The Sopranos Spicy City Tenacious D Todd McFarlane's Spawn Tracey Takes On...
2000s debuts	Animated Tales of the World Big Love Bored to Death Carnivàle Cathouse: The Series Classical Baby Curb Your Enthusiasm The Comeback Costas Now Da Ali G Show Deadwood Def Poetry Jam Eastbound & Down Entourage Extras Flight of the Conchords G String Divas Harold and the Purple Crayon Hung In Treatment I Spy Joe Buck Live John from Cincinnati K Street Kindergarten KO Nation The Life & Times of Tim Little Britain USA Lucky Louie The Mind of the Married Man The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency On the Record with Bob Costas El Perro y El Gato Pornucopia Project Greenlight Rome Six Feet Under Stuart Little Summer Heights High Tales from the Neverending Story Tell Me You Love Me True Blood Tourgasm Unscripted The Wire
2010s debuts	After the Thrones All Def Comedy Angry Boys Animals Any Given Wednesday with Bill Simmons Ballers Barry Big Little Lies A Black Lady Sketch Show Boardwalk Empire The Brink Camping Crashing The Deuce Divorce Doll & Em Enlightened Esme & Roy Family Tree Funny or Die Presents Game of Thrones Gentleman Jack Getting On Girls Hello Ladies Here and Now High Maintenance His Dark Materials How to Make It in America Insecure Ja'mie: Private School Girl Jonah from Tonga The Leftovers Life's Too Short Looking Los Espookys Luck Masterclass The Newsroom The Ricky Gervais Show Room 104 Sally4Ever The Shop Silicon Valley Succession Togetherness Treme Veep Vice Vice News Tonight Vice Principals Vinyl Westworld Wyatt Cenac's Problem Areas
2020s debuts	Avenue 5 Betty How To with John Wilson The Idol Lovecraft Country The Nevers Painting with John Pause with Sam Jay Perry Mason Run The Time Traveler's Wife The Vow Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty