05-06-2025
FTX Limited Series a Go at Netflix With Julia Garner, Anthony Boyle Starring
Netflix has greenlit a series about the rise and fall of cryptocurrency exchange FTX and the two central figures involved — Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison.
The streamer has formally ordered The Altruists, which will chronicle how Bankman-Fried and Ellison 'two hyper-smart, ambitious young idealists tried to remake the global financial system in the blink of an eye — and then seduced, coaxed, and teased each other into stealing $8 billion.' Julia Garner, who had been in talks to star in the drama, and Anthony Boyle will play Ellison and Bankman-Fried, respectively.
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Graham Moore (The Imitation Game, The Outfit) and Jacqueline Hoyt (The Leftovers, The Underground Railroad) will serve as co-showrunners on the series. James Ponsoldt (Shrinking) is set to direct. The Altruists comes from Barack and Michelle Obama's Higher Ground Productions, which has an overall deal at Netflix.
'For nearly three years now, Sam and Caroline's story has been my daily obsession,' said Moore. 'I'm so grateful to my friends at Netflix and Higher Ground for loving this story not only as much as I do, but in the same way that I do. And we can't wait to show all of you why.'
FTX went under in late 2022 after a run on customer withdrawals at the crypto exchange brought to light an $8 billion imbalance in its books. Bankman-Fried was convicted in November 2023 on seven charges of fraud and conspiracy; Ellison, who was co-CEO of a related hedge fund, Alameda Research — and Bankman-Fried's former girlfriend — testified against him after pleading guilty to other charges.
The Altruists brings Garner back to Netflix, where she won three Emmys for her role on Ozark and also was nominated for Inventing Anna. She'll next be seen in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, where she plays the Silver Surfer, when the Marvel movie hits theaters in July.
Boyle's credits include FX's Say Nothing and Apple's Masters of the Air and Manhunt.
Moore, Hoyt and Ponsoldt will executive produce the series with Vinnie Malhotra and Jessie Dicovitsky for Higher Ground, Scoop Wasserstein for New York Magazine/Vox Media Studios, Tonia Davis, Lauren Morelli and Garner.
The Altruists is one of several TV and film projects delving into Bankman-Fried and FTX. Lena Dunham is writing a feature film for Apple and A24, and Amazon's Prime Video ordered a limited series from Joe and Anthony Russo's AGBO and writer David Weil shortly after FTX imploded. On the nonfiction side, Mark Wahlberg's Unrealistic Ideas and Fortune magazine are teaming on a documentary, and Bloomberg has also produced a doc about the company's collapse.
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