The official trailer for new documentary Travis Barker: Louder Than Fear has been released – featuring his Blink-182 bandmates, the late Taylor Hawkins and more. Watch below.
The “unfiltered” 90-minute film is set for release on Hulu and Hulu On Disney+ for bundle subscribers in the US, and via Disney+ globally this Friday (August 13). It’ll follow the doc’s world premiere at the Tribeca Festival in New York earlier this summer.
Co-directed by Justin Krook and Michael Dwyer, the project explores the Blink drummer’s life and career, the 2008 plane crash that almost claimed his life, and the “raw and redemptive journey” he embarked on afterwards.
Louder Than Fear finds the musician “battling pain, grief and the thin line between survival and surrender”, per an official description. It boasts appearances from collaborators, cultural icons and those closest to Barker.
“This is the story of the man behind the tattoos. A tribute to those who keep going when the music almost stops,” the synopsis adds.
Now, an almost three-minute trailer has been shared online, giving fans a sneak peek at what to expect from the emotional film. The clip begins by reflecting on the aftermath of Barker’s near-death experience, before the drummer speaks of experiencing “the worst flashbacks” about the crash.
We then hear praise for Barker’s abilities behind the kit, with one interview clip featuring former Foo Fighters sticksman Hawkins – who died in 2022, aged 50. “He just had this, ‘Oh, you’re gonna get picked up by a band, and you will be a star attraction’ [quality],” Hawkins said.
Later, Barker recalled being enlisted by Mark Hoppus and Tom DeLonge to join Blink-182‘s line-up. Hoppus said having him on board “felt effortless”, while DeLonge looked back on the trio’s “wild ride”.
Barker went on to remember how the “non-stop” touring schedule resulted in his addiction to painkillers. “I was taking so many pills that I had a security guard whose only job was to watch me sleep and make sure I was breathing,” he revealed.
The trailer then detailed the “fire and chaos” of the plane crash – which resulted in Barker suffering third-degree burns on 65 per cent of his body, and spending three months in hospital for “27 surgeries”.
He previously said the subsequent anxiety and depression were so great that he “offered a friend $1milllion to kill him”.
Barker’s assistant Chris ‘Lil Chris’ Baker and bodyguard Charles ‘Che’ Still were killed in the crash, along with the pilot and co-pilot. Barker and Adam ‘DJ AM’ Goldstein survived, but the latter died a year later due to an accidental drug overdose.
“Che and Chris were like brothers to me,” Barker said in the new trailer, reflecting on his survivor’s guilt. “And then AM passing away a year later… why am I here, when everyone else isn’t?”
- READ MORE: Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus on death, defiance and dick jokes: “I’m very thankful to be alive”
He added: “I had to ask myself who I was gonna be after this accident.”
There are also clips of interviews with Barker’s wife, Kourtney Kardashian, and his children, as the musician expressed his “appreciation for life”.
Barker appeared at the tribute concerts for Taylor Hawkins in London and Los Angeles in 2022. The following year, he revealed that he had asked Hawkins to play drums together shortly before his passing.
The Blink drummer previously explained that the 2008 plane crash made him quit prescription drugs, describing it as “my rehab”. He has since overcome his fear of flying. In 2021, he took his first flight in 13 years with his now-wife Kourtney Kardashian. Two years ago, Barker shared a tribute to his friends who died in the accident. “Gone but never forgotten,” he wrote.
Barker has described the forthcoming Louder Than Fear as “an unfiltered look at my journey after a life-changing experience” that “spotlights the amazing people I have in my life who carried me through it” (via Rolling Stone). “I feel incredibly lucky to be able to document it and be able to share it with all of you,” he continued
“This documentary started over 10 years ago and it’s been a wild, wild ride, and I can’t wait to share it with the world.”
Meanwhile, Barker has revealed that Blink-182 are currently working on a new album. The project will follow on from 2023’s ‘One More Time…’, which marked their first record in over a decade with the original trio of Hoppus, DeLonge and Barker.
