Filmmaker Alex Gibney Says New Elon Musk Documentary 'Upends The Myth' Of Tech Titan's Genius

VENICE, Italy — Documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney says his nearly four-hour film "Musk," which premiered this week at the Venice Film Festival, dismantles the popular image of Elon Musk as a modern-day inventor, arguing instead that the billionaire's true skill lies in convincing investors to believe in visions that rarely align with reality.

Gibney, whose past subjects have included Enron, Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, the Church of Scientology, and U.S. military abuses at Bagram and Abu Ghraib, told The Associated Press that nothing in his career compares to the sheer scope of power held by Musk. Bleecker Street is set to release the documentary in theaters in October.

Asked why he chose to make a film about Musk, Gibney said the project began with an outside pitch in early 2023 that he was initially hesitant to pursue.

"A number of people came to me a few years ago, actually early 2023, and said, would you like to make a film about him?" Gibney said. "And I initially wasn't sure, but a really good friend of mine convinced me that it was a good idea because it would be a portrait of kind of 21st century power. And so with that, I dug in."

Gibney said his research led him to a conclusion that reframes the source of Musk's influence entirely, tracing it not to invention but to his ability to project confidence about ambitious futures.

"I think the source of his power comes from, how should I put this, bulls---?" Gibney said. "That is to say, his ability to speak with confidence about the future in ways that convince people to invest in his companies. It's really a future that rarely is in sync with facts or evidence or any remote possibility. So that is really what I discovered. That and the fact I think his genius, if there is a genius, is that he is not an inventor, he's an investor. His genius is stock pumping."

The documentary also examines Musk's political shift toward President Donald Trump, a move Gibney said surprised many who had previously viewed Musk as a favorite of environmentally minded audiences because of his leadership at Tesla. Gibney said his research pointed to two underlying motivations he had initially underestimated.

"I discovered two things," Gibney said. "One is, in a way, it was a predictable transition because he goes where the federal government money is. But the other reason is his companies were facing an enormous number of federal investigations. And indeed, Tesla was under criminal investigation. But out of that case, there was a good chance that under a Kamala Harris administration, he might go to prison. He joked about that on the Tucker Carlson show. I think those were two key motivators that I had initially underestimated."

Gibney said common explanations attributing Musk's political shift to opposition against progressive social movements did not hold up under closer scrutiny.

"A lot of people clocked it to the woke mind virus," Gibney said. "After doing some research, I didn't see it that way."

Reflecting on how Musk compares to the other powerful figures and institutions he has profiled throughout his career, Gibney said the scale of Musk's influence stands apart, even as the underlying psychological pattern feels familiar.

"Nothing compares to this in terms of the scope of his power," Gibney said. "What's interesting about Musk is it's not so much something that's new as an old wine in a new bottle." Gibney described Musk as exhibiting what he called "noble cause corruption," in which a genuine belief in an important mission, in Musk's case making humanity multiplanetary and advancing sustainable energy, becomes a justification for increasingly questionable conduct in pursuit of that goal.

"Musk is not dissimilar from the guys at Enron," Gibney said. "He's not dissimilar from Elizabeth Holmes in the way that he bent the truth to serve his impulses. The one big difference with Musk is that he has companies, SpaceX and Tesla, which contain a great number of very qualified engineers and executive leaders."

Gibney's film has already drawn a public response from its subject. Musk previously called the documentary a "hit piece" on social media, prompting a direct reply from Gibney asking how Musk could make that judgment. Asked whether he approaches his subjects willing to have his own assumptions challenged, Gibney said bias is inevitable but that he remains committed to following facts wherever they lead.

"There is always bias, but I'm always willing to have my assumptions challenged," Gibney said. "I started off as a kind of an admirer and was honest in my desire to want to talk to him, but ultimately he didn't want to talk to me. Then you start digging into the facts and you follow them where they lead. And where they led for me was to a place that upended the myth, I would say, of Elon Musk as a kind of modern Leonardo da Vinci."

Asked whether Musk attempted to interfere with the film's production, Gibney said the more significant obstacle came not from Musk directly but from the fear he inspired in people close to him, including both supporters and critics within his companies.

"He didn't really except in so far as the fact that people were terribly afraid to speak to me on the record, or at least on camera," Gibney said. "They were just terrified of Elon. And these were people in his companies. These were people who knew him well. These were supporters and critics. A lot of people close to him who were his admirers would say, 'I can't talk to you unless I get Elon's permission.' I thought, wow, for such a big and powerful person, that seems awfully weak."

Given the film's nearly four-hour runtime, Gibney addressed a question he said comes up frequently when people learn of the project's length.

"When I told people that there was going to be a nearly four-hour Elon Musk documentary, the first question was 'did he make it about himself?'" Gibney was asked, to which he responded that the film differs substantially from other recent documentaries centered on public figures close to political power, joking that "this probably doesn't share that much with the Melania documentary." Gibney added that despite its serious subject matter, he intended the film itself to remain engaging for audiences.

"One of the things I would say about the film is it's a dark and dangerous topic, but the film itself is a fun ride," Gibney said.

"Musk" is among the most anticipated titles at this year's Venice Film Festival, arriving amid sustained public fascination with the billionaire's expanding influence across technology, politics and global business. With its theatrical release set for October through Bleecker Street, the documentary is expected to reignite public debate over Musk's legacy and the sources of his power, following its high-profile premiere on the festival's international stage this week.