Ben McKenzie Crypto Documentary Exposes SBF, Celebrity Investors

Ben McKenzie released the trailer for his cryptocurrency documentary Tuesday. The ben mckenzie crypto documentary features interviews with Sam Bankman-Fried filmed months before FTX imploded.

Not subtle.

The film, titled “Everyone Is Lying to You for Money,” includes 2022 footage of Bankman-Fried and former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky before their respective empires collapsed. International sales agency The Forge distributed the trailer Tuesday. McKenzie—known for TV roles in Gotham and The OC—calls crypto “pretty stupid” in the footage. The documentary chronicles his shift from Hollywood actor to industry critic.

The cast list reads like a crypto cautionary tale. El Salvador President Nayib Bukele appears, the man who made Bitcoin legal tender in 2021. Gerard Butler admits on camera he “made a ton of money” investing in crypto but didn’t “actually know anything about it.” That quote captures the 2020-2021 bull run perfectly. Actress Morena Baccarin also features. The trailer shows McKenzie asking SBF directly about political donations—a line of questioning that aged well given subsequent legal proceedings.

McKenzie’s transformation started in 2020 when he first learned about cryptocurrency. By 2022, after FTX’s collapse, he testified at a US Senate hearing investigating the exchange’s downfall. His assessment: the industry is “the largest Ponzi scheme in history.” Strong words. He’s committed to that position.

The ben mckenzie crypto documentary arrives as the industry attempts to rebuild credibility. FTX collapsed in November 2022. Celsius filed for bankruptcy in July 2022. Both CEOs now face consequences. Bankman-Fried is serving a 25-year federal prison sentence following his 2023 conviction on seven felony counts related to misusing customer funds. Mashinsky faces criminal charges. The documentary captures both men before the legal reckonings.

The timing of that 2022 footage matters. McKenzie interviewed these executives whilst they still controlled billions in customer assets. SBF discussed political donations openly—he donated over $70 million to candidates in the 2022 election cycle before authorities charged him with campaign finance violations. The documentary preserves those pre-collapse interviews.

Butler’s confession highlights a broader problem. He profited significantly from crypto investments despite admitting he understood nothing about the technology. That pattern repeated across celebrity endorsements from 2020-2022. Kim Kardashian, Floyd Mayweather, and Tom Brady all promoted crypto projects. The SEC later fined several celebrities for undisclosed promotional payments.

What’s the point of the ben mckenzie crypto documentary? McKenzie argues the industry systematically deceived retail investors through celebrity endorsements and misleading marketing. The film’s title—”Everyone Is Lying to You for Money”—states that thesis directly. Whether the documentary provides new revelations beyond McKenzie’s previous Senate testimony and book remains unclear. Cointelegraph reached out to the filmmakers for details on the SBF and Bukele interviews but received no response by publication time.

Bankman-Fried still has two potential paths to early release. His lawyers filed an appeal after his 2024 sentencing seeking to overturn the conviction. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals hadn’t released any decision as of Wednesday. SBF also lobbied President Donald Trump through social media posts praising the administration’s actions. That strategy failed. Trump said in a January interview he wasn’t considering a pardon for the former CEO.

The ben mckenzie crypto documentary will test whether audiences want to revisit the 2022 crypto collapse. FTX’s implosion dominated headlines for months. Congressional hearings examined every detail. Bankman-Fried’s trial provided extensive public documentation. McKenzie’s film offers celebrity interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, but the core story is well-known. The Forge hasn’t announced a release date.

For now, the trailer circulates. McKenzie built a second career as crypto’s most prominent Hollywood critic. The documentary represents the culmination of four years investigating the industry. Whether it changes minds or simply confirms existing views depends on what the full film reveals beyond Tuesday’s preview.

Release date: TBD.