A wave of films arriving in theaters and on streaming in 2026 is taking a sharply critical view of Silicon Valley, with several major studios backing projects that portray prominent technology founders in an unfavorable light. The releases include Aaron Sorkin's The Social Reckoning, which depicts Mark Zuckerberg as a robotic figure whose ambitions threaten democracy, and Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim's You Can See Everything, a documentary about Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes as she prepared to begin her prison sentence.
The films draw on years of critical reporting about their subjects, and the shift is notable when compared with earlier Hollywood treatments of the industry. David Fincher's 2010 film The Social Network presented Zuckerberg as a complicated, misunderstood figure, while The Social Reckoning centers on whistleblower Frances Haugen's allegations and Zuckerberg's transformation into an executive with autocratic control over a multibillion-dollar social media empire.
Alex Gibney's documentary about Elon Musk has encountered resistance. X has blocked advertising for the film, and Musk, who describes himself as a free speech absolutist, has threatened legal action against Gibney over what he called a hit piece. Advertisements were initially absent from YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, though the Meta platforms and YouTube reversed their decisions. TikTok has maintained its position, a fact made notable by the company's indirect ties to the Trump administration through Skydance Corporation CEO David Ellison, whose father, Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, is a longtime Trump supporter and helped lead the investor group that bought TikTok's US business last year. Gibney has reportedly been promised the film will air on HBO, now part of Skydance, next January.
Luca Guadagnino's Artificial, originally set for release by Amazon, also faced marketing difficulties. Amazon backed out of its distribution deal in June, months after announcing a $50 billion investment in OpenAI. The film, a dark comedy that portrays Sam Altman as a manipulative sociopath, opens widely on December 25. You Can See Everything began production after Holmes was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison, with Fielder living alongside Holmes and her partner William Evans in a rental home and questioning her about why she does not believe she defrauded Theranos investors.
Some of these films have been box office flops, but their release reflects a broader cultural shift in attitudes toward technology companies and their leaders.
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