Topline
Some of the world’s most powerful tech moguls—Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Sam Altman—are hitting the big screen this fall in both documentary and fictional form, but despite strong critical reviews, assessments from the real-life billionaires range from silence to “hit piece” allegations.
“Musk,” a documentary about the world’s wealthiest person, opens in theaters this weekend. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)
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Key Facts
The fall billionaire movie craze kicks off this weekend with “Musk,” a nearly four-hour documentary on the world’s wealthiest person, Tesla and SpaceXAI billionaire Musk, directed by Oscar winner Alex Gibney.
Also opening in theaters this weekend is “The Social Reckoning,” a sequel to the 2010 film “The Social Network,” which stars Jeremy Strong as Zuckerberg as Meta grapples with a whistleblower leak that revealed the company was aware of harmful impacts of its social media platforms.
Landing in theaters next weekend is “You Can See Everything,” a documentary by comedian Nathan Fielder on Theranos founder and convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes, who was once a billionaire before her biotech company Theranos crumbled under the weight of faulty technology, lawsuits and investigations.
A handful of tech billionaires, including Musk and Altman, will be portrayed in “Artificial,” a movie about Altman’s days-long ouster as OpenAI’s chief executive in 2023.
How Are Critics Reacting To This Fall’s Billionaire Films?
Exceedingly well, for the most part. The two documentaries, “Musk” and “You Can See Everything,” boast perfect 100% scores on Rotten Tomatoes with more than 20 reviews apiece. A Hollywood Reporter review said “Musk” is a “stroke of creative genius” that portrays the tech mogul as an “unabashed megalomaniac,” which will “leave many audiences chilled to the bone.” “Artificial,” which premiered earlier this week at the New York Film Festival, has a strong 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on the first 16 reviews. “The Social Reckoning,” though, received more mixed reviews, notching a 56% score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 178 reviews. That’s below both this year’s other billionaire movies and its predecessor, “The Social Network,” which earned a 96% score before winning a handful of Oscars.
How Has Musk Responded To The Documentary?
Musk has been a fierce and frequent critic of the “Musk” documentary. He’s hurled a slew of insults at director Gibney across at least a dozen posts on X, calling him a “tinfoil hat crackpot,” “absolute scum of the Earth,” a “horrible human,” a “bitter old man who lost the plot long ago,” a “douchebag to his core” and an “idiot” who “lacks any integrity whatsoever.” Musk has taken umbrage with Gibney’s choice of interviewees, which reportedly include his estranged father Errol, former girlfriend Ashley St. Clair and ex-wife Justine Musk. “Gibney just assembled a hit list of people who either have an axe to grind or don’t even know me (but still have an axe to grind),” Musk said in a post last month, also calling the film a “hit piece.” After Musk made a legal threat, Gibney said he reached out to him but heard “nothing back.”
How Has Altman Responded To ‘Artificial’?
Altman was critical of “Artificial” in a Vanity Fair interview earlier this week. “I don’t think they’re going for accuracy,” Altman said, in response to a question about what appears to be a “dark” portrayal of himself. “I mean, they’re trying to make a good movie and maybe it will be good,” Altman said, clarifying, “It will not be good as an accurate depiction.” Altman said he watched the movie’s trailer and denied he has a bunker filled with firearms, as is portrayed in the clip. “That’s an example of an inaccuracy,” he said, though he believes actor Andrew Garfield nailed the way he walks. Altman said he has not spoken to Garfield, but he said the production filmed outside of his house one morning and the two men—the fictional and real Altman—waved at one another.
contra
Zuckerberg has not publicly responded to his portrayal in “The Social Reckoning” (Forbes has reached out to Meta for comment). Strong told GQ he sent an email to the Meta billionaire after signing on to the movie, and he received a response, but he declined to share what Zuckerberg said. Zuckerberg was previously critical of “The Social Network,” saying in 2014 the movie “made up a bunch of stuff that I found kind of hurtful.” Holmes, for her part, was a willing participant in “You Can See Everything,” inviting Fielder to live in her home before starting her federal prison sentence.
forbes valuation
The billionaires we know are portrayed in this fall’s movies are worth about a collective $1.3 trillion, according to Forbes estimates. Musk, the world’s wealthiest person, leads the pack, with an estimated net worth of $1 trillion—the world’s first and only trillionaire—largely from his stakes in Tesla and SpaceXAI. Zuckerberg, the world’s sixth-wealthiest person, is worth $246.4 billion, thanks to a 13% stake in Meta. Aside from Musk, at least four AI billionaires are portrayed in Artificial: OpenAI’s president and co-founder Greg Brockman, worth $25.5 billion; OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever, worth $7 billion; Altman, worth $3.3 billion; and Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, worth $15.5 billion. Holmes, at her peak, was worth $4.5 billion based on her 50% stake in Theranos, which Forbes once estimated was worth $9 billion. But after allegations surfaced that Theranos’ technology did not work and investigations ensued, Holmes’ net worth was revised to $0.
further reading
‘Musk’ Documentary Portrays Tesla Billionaire As An ‘Unabashed Megalomaniac,’ First Reviews Say (Forbes)
Elon Musk Rages Against ‘Musk’ Director Alex Gibney: ‘Lacks Any Integrity Whatsoever’ (Forbes)
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