Netflix's The Altruists FTX miniseries, starring Anthony Boyle, premieres November 19
Netflix released the first trailer on Thursday for its eight-episode drama, which dramatizes the FTX collapse through Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison. The series is set to stream on the platform on 19 November.
Premiere date and cast
Netflix released the first trailer for The Altruists on Thursday, and the eight-episode limited series is set to stream on the platform on 19 November. Graham Moore created the show and serves as its writer and showrunner, with Jacqueline Hoyt co-executive producing. Anthony Boyle plays Sam Bankman-Fried and Julia Garner plays Caroline Ellison, the two figures at the center of the collapse of the FTX exchange. Alex Lawther, Karan Soni, Naomi Okada, Madison Hu, Matt Rife and Eugene Young also star. Barack and Michelle Obama are listed as executive producers through Higher Ground Productions, and the series is inspired by New York Magazine articles written by Kevin T. Dugan and Jen Wieczner.
The fraud at the center
According to Gizmodo, Bankman-Fried and Ellison, along with other executives, were involved in a scheme to misuse billions of dollars in customer funds deposited on FTX. The money was secretly funneled to Alameda Research, which Bankman-Fried co-founded and Ellison later led, to cover losses and repay lenders. Some of the funds were also used to finance investments, issue personal loans and bankroll political contributions. The scheme came apart in the fall of 2022, when customers tried to withdraw their money and the exchange did not have enough on hand to cover deposits, and FTX filed for bankruptcy shortly after. The show's logline cites $8 billion in alleged theft, while the US government alleged that the pair cheated investors and customers out of upwards of $10 billion. The Hollywood Reporter notes that Bankman-Fried was convicted in November 2023 on seven charges of fraud and conspiracy.
Sentences and the timeline
Ellison became the star witness against Bankman-Fried, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in March 2024. Ellison pleaded guilty to multiple fraud and conspiracy charges and was sentenced to two years in September 2024 after cooperating with prosecutors. She was released from federal custody in January, while Bankman-Fried still has over 20 years left on his sentence. The timeline below places the key dates of the case alongside the series premiere.
- Customers try to withdraw funds, exposing a shortfall, and FTX files for bankruptcy shortly after
- Bankman-Fried is convicted on seven charges of fraud and conspiracy
- Judge Lewis Kaplan sentences Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison
- Ellison is sentenced to two years in prison after cooperating with prosecutors
- The Altruists premieres on Netflix
Creative approach and what comes next
Gizmodo describes Netflix's telling as taking a more sympathetic approach, portraying the pair as modern-day Silicon Valley versions of Bonnie and Clyde who initially set out to do good. In a Netflix blog post, Moore wrote the following about the years the show depicts.
Over the course of the years that our show depicts, Sam and Caroline, with the very best of intentions, talked each other and themselves into committing a number of terrible crimes.
The trailer shows Boyle as a brazen, ambitious college student who teams up with Garner's Ellison to launch a cryptocurrency business. The trailer was released on Thursday, 8 October, six weeks before the 19 November premiere. TechCrunch notes that the date lands just in time for Thanksgiving.
