Gibney’s ‘Musk’ Documentary: A Four-Hour Critique of Power and Ego

Key points

• The documentary, released on October 9, 2026, is approximately four hours long and was produced after three years of research by Gibney and his team.
• Musk declined to be interviewed, leading Gibney to create a computer-generated avatar that speaks using Musk’s actual quotes and voice.
• The film highlights Musk’s first business success in 1995, which netted him $22 million, and his subsequent control of Tesla and SpaceX.
• Critics and former associates, including Martin Eberhard and Kara Swisher, discuss Musk’s tendency to over-promise and rewrite history to claim credit for others' work.
• The documentary addresses the human cost of DOGE’s cuts to USAID, with former administrator Samantha Power citing potential impacts on global food programs.
• Musk’s personal life is scrutinized, including his first wife Justine’s account of 'gaslighting' and the death of their first child, Nevada, in 2002.

Background

Prior coverage noted that major social media platforms, including X, YouTube, TikTok, and Meta, refused to run paid advertisements for the documentary, citing political content policies. This led to a free speech debate as the distributor, Bleecker Street, appealed the decisions. Earlier reports also highlighted legal threats from Musk’s team and the film’s framing of Musk as a chaotic figure with shifting political alliances.

How outlets are covering it

Roger Ebert praises the film as potentially the most important of the year, emphasizing its exposure of Musk’s ego-driven engineering of his environment and the chilling implications of his power. The New York Times criticizes the film for offering unsatisfying answers to how Musk gained such power, noting that much of the content is not new given his long public profile. The Atlantic frames Musk as a 'human of mass destruction,' highlighting his self-aggrandizing nature through archival interviews. NBC News focuses on the damning testimonies from Musk’s own lieutenants, such as Ashok Elluswamy and Jared Birchall, which provide fresh evidence of his management style and corporate practices. While Ebert and The Atlantic view the film as a powerful exposé, The New York Times questions its novelty, and NBC News highlights the value of internal employee accounts.

Why it matters

The documentary provides a comprehensive look at how a single individual has influenced global technology, politics, and society, raising questions about accountability and the concentration of power. It also highlights the challenges of holding influential figures accountable through media when traditional promotional channels are restricted by the subjects themselves or their allies.

What to watch

The film’s reception may influence public opinion ahead of potential Democratic investigations into Musk if they gain control of Congress after the midterm elections. Legal battles over defamation claims may also emerge, particularly regarding the film’s assertions about the 2024 election and Starlink’s role.