Many people were too frightened to speak publicly about Elon Musk, director Alex Gibney said on Tuesday, as he unveiled his marathon documentary about the billionaire entrepreneur at the Venice Film Festival.
Gibney has made films about powerful people, corporations and organizations before: Enron, Elizabeth Holmes, Scientology and the U.S. military's abuses at Bagram and Abu Ghraib are just a few. And yet, he said, nothing compares to the scope of power held by his latest subject.
With a nearly four-hour runtime, "Musk" is having its world premiere this week at the Venice Film Festival. It's one of the most hotly anticipated of the festival and the year – Bleecker Street is releasing it in theaters in October.
The movie charts Musk's rise from the dotcom era to become one of the world's most influential figures, questioning how an unelected tech titan came to wield such sway over politics and public debate.
"There was a tremendous sense of fear of talking, really almost existential fear, both among people who were his critics, people who were his business colleagues and people who are his friends," Gibney told Reuters.
"I talked to many, many, many, many people who, except for some of the brave people who are here, declined to speak."
The Tesla and SpaceX chief has dismissed the film, writing on his social media platform X this month that Gibney was biased and was "obviously going to make the most convincingly terrible hit piece on me that he can possibly think of."
Hooking up with Trump
Joined by journalist Zoe Schiffer and Ashley St. Clair, Musk's former partner and the mother of one of his many children, Gibney said he began work on the project in 2023 and had originally planned a less ambitious movie.
"We intended to make a shorter film before Elon Musk became wrapped in the career of Donald Trump and the presidency of the United States," Gibney said. He added that the first thing he did was to contact Musk, who declined to be interviewed.
Gibney, whose previous subjects have included the collapse of energy firm Enron and Scientology, said Musk's ascent was "the story of the confidence man" whose empire was built on an ability to sell inflated visions and hyped-up promises.
Without necessarily presenting any new bombshells, the film links Musk's takeover of Twitter, his government cost-cutting drive and his reliance on federal contracts to the creation of unprecedented power and wealth in the hands of just one man.
Global political agenda
The documentary uses an AI-generated version of Musk that speaks words he has uttered over the years. Asked whether he expected legal challenges, Gibney said: "We consulted our lawyers, and they gave us a sign-off to go forward."
After embracing Trump's MAGA movement, the film shows Musk's growing support for far-right political causes internationally, including the surging Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
"I think he's pursuing a global right-wing agenda, both for ideological and for very practical and monetary reasons," said Gibney, adding that Musk was "extremely" dangerous to world democracy.
He also offered an unflattering assessment of the billionaire's character. "I would say he has a very difficult time with empathy," the director said.
St. Clair, who revealed in the documentary that she had turned down a $40 million non-disclosure agreement after her relationship with Musk ended, echoed the criticism.
"His most complicated relationship is with the truth," she said. In the film, she says simply: "Elon is a nuke."
"Musk" is being shown out of competition at the Venice festival, which runs until Sept. 12.