Elon Musk is a very familiar figure to Ars readers, due to his massive influence (for better and worse) on the technology sector over the past 20 years. Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney’s latest biographical documentary – simply titled Musk-covers a lot of familiar ground and challenges the carefully crafted public image of Musk as a visionary tech titan.
Gibney’s documentary presents Musk as more of a Gilded Age confidant, rejiggered for the 21st. The film is bound to push all the right outrage buttons, whether you’re a Musk fan or a detractor – making it very much a product of the peculiar social media-driven era we live in.
Gibney has been making documentaries since the 1980s covering subjects as varied as Jimi Hendrix, Hunter S. Thompson and gonzo journalism, WikiLeaks, Scientology, Steve Jobs, Elizabeth Holmes (the subject of another upcoming documentary, You can see everythingwith comedian Nathan Fielder), Boris Becker, Sopranos Creator David Chase, alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election, the opioid epidemic, and cyclist Lance Armstrong. He was nominated for his first Oscar in 2005 Enron: The smartest guys in the roomand two years later won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature for Taxi to the Dark Side.
Tackling the subject of Elon Musk seems like a natural progression from those previous works. Gibney has never been one to shy away from controversy, but even before Musk’s release, the film drew ire from its subject and threats of a defamation lawsuit. There have even been (as yet unsubstantiated) rumors that Universal Pictures is getting cold feet from theatrically releasing the film in international markets.
There is certainly no shortage of material for Gibney to work with and the film covers the most famous aspects of Musk’s life: Tesla and the fatalities associated with its driver assistance systems, SpaceX, Starlink, his purchase of Twitter, his shift from warning about the risks of AI to fully embrace it with Grok, his embrace of Trump DOGE, his alleged drug DOGE, the creation more) children. Those interviewed include ex-wife Justine Musk, Kara Swisher, Martin Eberhard, Geoffrey Hinton, former MAGA influencer Ashley St. David Byrne co-wrote and performed an original song for the soundtrack, “Let Me Sell You a Dream,” with more of Musk’s words.