A photo of former Olympic Snowboarder Ryan James Wedding released by the FBI. Photo: FBI
America is a wild place to live these days. Allow me to rant for a second…
It’s elected a President for the second time who’s long pinned the problems of everyday Americans on an idea that immigrants and the drugs they carry over our borders are what’s ripping this country apart at the seams – because throwing a brick of coke in a backpack and swimming across the Rio Grande is very efficient for a multi-billion dollar cartel operation.
According to our own U.S. Customs and Border Protection, however, most drugs are actually carried over our borders in cars driven by Americans (90 percent, according to the department). But scary foreigners make for a greater bad guy when it comes to the internet. Venturing into any comment section of a news post concerning America’s fentanyl crisis, its immigration policies, Mexico’s notorious cartels — whether it’s passing on real information or not — is headache inducing.
People are infuriated by the mention of these things, both Republicans and Democrats. Which is why I’ve always found responses to any story about Ryan Wedding, the ex-Olympic snowboarder who turned into a cartel-affiliated kingpin, so odd. He’s Canadian – as in not American. And he landed on the FBI’s most wanted list because, well, he’s accused of carrying drugs over our borders to the south and the north. And he’s accused of murdering people along the way. He’s exactly what our current President screams is causing the downfall of America. But for some reason, his story doesn’t elicit the same anger and fury from the public. In fact, I’ve never once heard our President bring the guy up in support of his argument for Canadian tariffs, which, oddly enough, would be an anecdote based in reality to support his position. Instead, you get the general sense that Ryan Wedding’s story is a punchline.
“Powder to the people.”
“Dude loves all kinds of snow.”
“Must have been a good powder day.”
This is the low-hanging fruit whenever a Ryan Wedding headline pops up. I’m not arguing people should feel one way or another about his story, I’m just pointing out the clear shift from “national crisis” to “punchline” when the culprit shape shifts from gun-wielding bandido to…gun-wielding snowboarder. And another thing is abundantly clear in these convos: people can’t wait for the movie to come out.
They’re getting their wish.
Dogwoof and Visitor Media announced this week they are partnering on a docuseries, ‘Snow King: From Olympian to Narco.’
“The series, which draws from the comprehensive investigative reporting of Rolling Stone and the Toronto Star, charts the astonishing journey of Ryan Wedding – a former Olympic snowboarder who is now one of the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted fugitives, accused of running a violent, billion-dollar drug empire for Mexico’s most notorious cartel,” notes a release from the production companies. “The verité-driven documentary series takes viewers inside the hunt to uncover how Wedding transformed from national hero to alleged cartel boss and international fugitive.”
According to Deadline, filming is already well underway. The production started rolling in Mexico and in Canada back in January, several weeks before the FBI announced Wedding had been added to its top 10 list and attaching a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest. The film itself will highlight the impact Wedding’s alleged crimes have had on real-life people.
“As the hunt for Wedding escalates, Snow King incorporates firsthand accounts from the people whose lives have been irrevocably changed by the crimes he and his co-conspirators have been charged with, creating a visceral, story-driven portrait of the international drug trade – and its devastating human costs,” they say.
Regardless of values, Ryan Wedding’s story is the real-life embodiment of a topic that has driven political discourse for decades. It’ll be worth a watch, if I were to put my money on it.
