Sam Bankman-Fried Wrote to Netflix Actor Anthony Boyle in Prison

Netflix is preparing to release “The Altruists,” a dramatization of the FTX collapse, in about three weeks, with Irish actor Anthony Boyle portraying former FTX chief executive Sam Bankman-Fried. Boyle contacted Bankman-Fried in prison by email while preparing for the role, according to a Wednesday Vanity Fair report.

Bankman-Fried reportedly answered the bulk of Boyle’s questions before the series was released, despite Boyle’s promise that he would not disclose what the former CEO shared. Boyle said he wanted to understand what drove someone to become the world’s youngest billionaire, adding that his interest was not in money, cryptocurrency or finance, but in what makes people act as they do.

The Netflix series focuses on Bankman-Fried’s relationship with Caroline Ellison, who led FTX-affiliated Alameda Research and was his girlfriend and colleague. Netflix released a trailer for “The Altruists” on Oct. 8. Bankman-Fried was convicted on seven felony counts involving the misuse of customer funds and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Ellison was released in January after serving more than a year under a plea deal with U.S. authorities.

Former FTX chief operating officer Constance Wang said the portrayals left her “physically upset” and argued that Boyle did not fully capture how socially awkward Bankman-Fried was. The series follows earlier books and documentaries, including Michael Lewis’s 2023 book “Going Infinite” and Ben McKenzie’s 2022 documentary “Everyone Is Lying to You for Money,” which included an interview with Bankman-Fried conducted before FTX’s collapse.