A major crypto scammer is having his story adapted to the big screen. Variety is reporting that Apple TV+ and A24 are in early talks for an adaptation of Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon, the Michael Lewis book that chronicles Sam Bankman-Fried’s rise and fall alongside his company, FTX.
Lena Dunham, who created the HBO series Girls, is set to write the script. The book the film is based on followed Bankman-Fried as FTX ascended to the top of the crypto world and then flamed out spectacularly. The book was first released in October of 2023 and immediately became a bestseller.
“When Michael Lewis first met him, Sam Bankman-Fried was the world’s youngest billionaire and crypto’s Gatsby,” the book’s official description reads. “CEOs, celebrities, and leaders of small countries all vied for his time and cash after he catapulted, practically overnight, onto the Forbes billionaire list. Who was this rumpled guy in cargo shorts and limp white socks, whose eyes twitched across Zoom meetings as he played video games on the side? Lewis sets out to answer this question, taking readers into the mind of Bankman-Fried, whose rise and fall offers an education in high-frequency trading, cryptocurrencies, philanthropy, bankruptcy, and the justice system. Both psychological portrait and financial roller-coaster ride, Going Infinite is Michael Lewis at the top of his game, tracing the mind-bending trajectory of a character who never liked the rules and was allowed to live by his own―until it all came undone.”
FTX was first founded in 2019 and quickly became one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. After billions of dollars that were supposed to be in the exchange were found to be missing, though, Bankman-Fried was indicted in a massive fraud scheme.
The movie is still in the earliest stages of development, so it’s unclear when it might be released or who will direct or star in the project.
