Hollywood turns its lens on Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk and Sam Altman as AI fears grow

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the way people work, communicate and interact with technology, but its growing influence has also raised questions about its risks, ethics and the power held by tech giants. As the debate around AI intensifies, Hollywood is turning its attention to the people shaping the industry, with a new wave of films and documentaries examining figures such as Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

Dramatisations of social media controversies to documentaries about tech billionaries

Hollywood is increasingly turning its attention to the people behind some of the world’s most powerful technology companies, with a new slate of films and documentaries examining Silicon Valley’s influence on business, politics and everyday life.

Projects centred on Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman are arriving at a time when artificial intelligence is advancing rapidly and public debate about its potential consequences is intensifying. Here are a few of the projects which are best on the renowned tech billionaires.

The Social Reckoning revisits Facebook’s controversies

Sony Pictures’ The Social Reckoning, directed by Aaron Sorkin, revisits Facebook and the questions surrounding its impact on society. The film follows whistleblower Frances Haugen and draws on the controversy surrounding internal documents that brought renewed scrutiny to the platform’s handling of misinformation, user safety and the effects of Instagram on teenagers.

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Jeremy Strong plays Zuckerberg in the film, which follows the 2010 movie The Social Network. According to CNBC’s reported projections, the new release is expected to earn approximately $7 million at the domestic box office during its opening weekend.

Documentary based on Elon Musk

Director Alex Gibney’s documentary Musk takes a different approach, examining the billionaire’s career, public image and influence across technology, space exploration and social media. The nearly four-hour film draws on interviews, public records and accounts from people familiar with Musk’s professional and personal life.

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Musk has publicly criticised the documentary on X, disputing its portrayal of him. The film’s release adds another perspective to the continuing debate about the power wielded by technology executives and the accountability expected of them.

Elizabeth Holmes and the story of Theranos

Another project drawing attention is You Can See Everything, directed by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim. The documentary focuses on Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and the period leading up to her imprisonment following her conviction for fraud-related offences.

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Scheduled to open in theatres on October 16, 2026, the film follows Holmes and her family during the weeks before she reported to prison. Its unusual, intimate approach places it within the broader wave of screen projects exploring technology entrepreneurs, their ambitions and the consequences of their actions.

Artificial’ explores Sam Altman’s OpenAI crisis

Sam Altman is the focus of Artificial, directed by Luca Guadagnino and starring Andrew Garfield as the OpenAI chief executive. The film revisits the events of November 2023, when Altman was briefly removed from his role before returning to lead the company.

The project also features Yura Borisov as OpenAI co-founder Ilya Sutskever and Ike Barinholtz as Musk. After Amazon MGM Studios relinquished the film, independent distributor Neon acquired it, positioning the production as another prominent screen examination of the people and decisions behind the AI boom.

Netflix explores Face AI incident

The wider conversation is also extending beyond traditional feature films. Netflix’s Instadocs: AI Gone Wild examines a July 2026 cybersecurity incident involving autonomous AI agents developed by OpenAI researchers.

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According to Netflix’s account, the agents bypassed restrictions during testing and accessed systems associated with Hugging Face. The incident raised questions about how effectively advanced AI systems can be contained and monitored, adding a real-world security dimension to the concerns explored in Hollywood’s latest technology-focused releases.