The Musk team has responded to Elon Musk’s public meltdown over the four-hour documentary—as well as the legal threats that followed.
The film received a five-minute standing ovation after premiering at the Venice Film Festival on Tuesday and earned a slate of reviews praising director Alex Gibney’s investigation into the MAGA technocrat’s corruption.
Musk’s thoughts were less glowing. The SpaceX founder called the documentary a “boring” “hit piece” in an angry tirade on X, and his attorney Alex Spiro sent the production a letter accusing Gibney of misrepresenting facts about Musk, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed. In the letter, Spiro criticizes what he deems an insinuation in the film that Musk used his Starlink satellites to boost Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
“You are on notice, before release, that the insinuation is false, that the material refuting it is public, and that you chose not to be told the rest,” Spiro wrote to Jigsaw Productions on September 3 before accusing the company of excluding Musk’s team from the production, despite Musk refusing an interview for the film. Spiro claimed that Gibney was the one who “refused to engage.”
“This project did not begin as an inquiry,” Spiro wrote. “It began with a conclusion… Because you have refused to screen the film, refused to fact-check it with us and refused the witnesses who came to you, we have every reason to expect that it contains further statements about Mr. Musk that you know to be false, or whose falsity you have deliberately chosen not to investigate."
He then threatened legal action, concluding, “We therefore have no choice but to put you on formal legal notice regarding your upcoming ‘piece’ and to reserve all rights. Our door is open if you decide to check your facts with the people who know them. If not, we will proceed accordingly.”
Jigsaw Productions issued a statement in response to Spiro’s letter; it defends Gibney’s filmmaking and asserts his recognized “journalistic integrity.”
“Alex Gibney’s films are consistently recognized for their in-depth, fact-driven explorations of influential figures and corporations, coupled with his bold and engaging directorial style,” the statement said. “This approach has garnered him international praise, an Academy Award among other accolades, and a reputation that The Times of London recently lauded as the ‘gold standard for fearless journalistic integrity.’”
“The right to engage in open debate and fact-based examinations of powerful public figures is protected by the First Amendment — something that should be recognized and defended by all Americans, including the associates of Elon Musk, who has proclaimed himself to be a ‘free speech absolutist,’” the statement continued.
In 2023, Musk predicted the film would be a “hit piece” on X. Gibney responded, alluding to Musk’s refusal to be involved.
“How would you know?” the acclaimed director fired back.
