Alex Gibney’s documentary “Musk” expands to theaters nationwide on Friday, October 16, after weeks of fights over who would carry its ads and what Musk has said about its director. Musk did not take part. The film runs nearly four hours and has played in New York and Los Angeles since October 9.
The ad fight
By September 25, X, TikTok, Meta and YouTube had all refused paid ads for the film from its distributor, Bleecker Street. Meta and YouTube later reversed course, saying the trailer had been flagged for “political content.” We have not seen X or TikTok change their position.
What Musk has said
Musk called the film a hit piece when it was announced three years ago. In recent weeks he has attacked Gibney personally on X, calling him a “tinfoil hat crackpot” among other insults. His camp has threatened legal action. We have seen no report of a lawsuit and no details. He has apparently not seen the film.
Who is on camera
Errol Musk, Elon’s father, is interviewed, along with Elon’s first wife. In an interview published October 13, Gibney said Errol agreed to take part right away, while other subjects took a lot of persuasion. Musk declined to sit down, so the filmmakers built a computer-generated version of him that speaks his own recorded words. Gibney says the first 45 minutes have viewers “rooting for Elon.”
The film also uses text messages and an audio recording provided by Ashley St. Clair, the mother of one of Musk’s children, who says she turned down about $40 million to keep her right to speak.
The open question
The film was meant for HBO, but that is now unclear. HBO’s parent company is run by David Ellison, whose father, Larry Ellison, is friendly with Musk.
Our take: a refused ad is not a verdict on whether a film is accurate, and the platforms that reversed blamed a political-content flag, not the film’s claims. The film is also one version of Musk’s story, built from people who know him and a stand-in for the man himself. Watch the opening-weekend numbers, any HBO decision, and whether the legal threats turn into filings. Our earlier reports: Errol Musk Appears in the New Musk Documentary and What Critics Are Saying.
