Musk did not participate in the making of the nearly four-hour documentary
NEED TO KNOW
- Musk, a documentary from director Alex Gibney about Elon Musk, is in theaters Oct. 16
- In a new teaser trailer, the entrepreneur is referred to as “possibly the greatest living inventor” and “a man who has lost his mind”
- The documentary will premiere at the Venice and Toronto International Film Festivals
Elon Musk’s story is hitting the big screen in the form of a documentary.
Musk, in theaters Oct. 16, is writer-director Alex Gibney’s incisive look at the trillionaire entrepreneur. Ahead of its Tuesday, Sept. 8 premiere at the 83rd Venice Film Festival, the doc — which is almost four hours long — has released a new teaser trailer.
As a rocket is seen taking off into space in the trailer, audio from news media describing Musk, 55, in various ways can be heard.
The voices refer to the world’s wealthiest man as “possibly the greatest living inventor” and “the real-life Iron Man,” as well as “chaotic, random, capricious,” and “manifestly cruel and selfish.”
Credit: Dia Dipasupil/Getty; Benjamin Fanjoy/Getty
The Musk trailer builds to a title card calling its titular subject “Earth’s most unchecked man” as a voice calls him “a man who has lost his mind.” The rocket ship glimpsed flying into orbit lands with an explosion as the movie’s title reveals itself.
Musk himself did not participate in the making of the documentary. In 2023, he took to X (formerly Twitter) to denounce it as “a hit piece.” Responding in another post, Gibney wrote, “How would you know?”
“Elon Musk has amassed so much power, he’s like a character in a Marvel comic book,” reads a Musk description from the Toronto International Film Festival, which will premiere the doc on Sept. 14.
“A short recap of his handiwork: Tesla popularized electric vehicles; Starlink expanded the reach of the internet; Twitter bowed to his takeover; and DOGE radically transformed the US government,” it continues. “Musk has been at the centre of AI development and this past summer, the IPO for SpaceX made him the richest man in the world. His influence arguably touches everyone on the planet. Surely this is worth fresh scrutiny.”
Gibney and Michael J. Palmer are credited as co-writers on the film, which includes commentators Kara Swisher and Sam Harris. Justine Musk, the trillionaire’s first ex-wife, will also feature.
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The Emmy- and Oscar-nominated Gibney has previously helmed the ambitious documentaries Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, Taxi to the Dark Side and the Elizabeth Holmes-focused The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley.
Musk became the world’s first trillionaire after his company SpaceX went public in June. The controversial figure’s vocal critics have included Alec Baldwin, Billie Eilish, Jimmy Kimmel and Mitt Romney.
Bleecker Street will release Musk in theaters on Oct. 16.
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