Netflix Director Indicted for Fraud Over Spending $4 Million in Company Funds on Dogecoin Investments

Netflix Director Indicted for Fraud Over Spending $4 Million in Company Funds on Dogecoin Investments

In the heyday of the Streaming Wars, Netflix shelled out a staggering $55 million for a sci-fi series dreamt up by the director behind the forgotten Keanu Reeves flick, 47 Ronin. According to a jaw-dropping federal indictment, this director allegedly swindled an astounding $11 million from Netflix, using the ill-gotten gains to fund luxurious expenditures and cryptocurrency investments.

This narrative of Netflix and the crafty director has unfolded for years. The streaming giant has been doggedly trying to retrieve their lost millions, all the while the director has been entangled in court battles, primarily regarding his divorce and disputes with Netflix over their souring deal. Now, the FBI has slapped the director with fraud charges.

"Carl Rinsch is alleged to have stolen more than $11 million from a prominent streaming platform to finance extravagant purchases and risky investments, instead of fulfilling his commitment to complete a television series," FBI Assistant Director Leslie Backschies stated in a press release. The FBI promises to root out anyone who seeks to defraud businesses.

The indictment offers some fascinating insights into the case, along with grainy screenshots of the show that Rinsch managed to complete. The story began in 2018. Rinsch was five years removed from the failure of 47 Ronin, but the streaming platforms were throwing money at every half-baked idea that surfaced, desperate to fill their services with content. Rinsch's idea was a series called "White Horse."

The FBI's indictment offers a captivating description of the show, saying, "White Horse was a science fiction television show about a scientist who created a group of superintelligent clones." These clones were confined to a walled area in a Brazilian city, where they developed advanced technology and clashed with humans. The title "White Horse" is a reference to one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, who rides a white horse – Death.

Netflix eventually signed a deal with Rinsch. The plan was to produce a 13-episode show that ran about two and a half hours, broken down into episodes that ran 4 to 10 minutes long. Rinsch did film some footage and there are screenshots of the show in the indictment. However, he also reportedly became erratic.

Sources and his divorce proceedings suggest that Rinsch was abuseing prescription amphetamine, growing paranoid, and disappearing at times. He missed meetings with executives and deadlines. Remarkably, he somehow convinced Netflix to give him another $11 million.

This second infusion of Netflix money forms the basis of the fraud case. The digital trail on these millions is well-documented. According to the charging documents, Rinsch moved the funds out of his production company and into personal bank accounts before consolidating them into a trust. Then he made dubious investments and lost half of it. "While Rinsch was in the process of losing most of the $11 million intended to complete White Horse, he falsely informed Netflix that White Horse was 'awesome and moving forward really well,'" the indictment said.

Rinsch used the $4 million he had left from the Netflix money and wagered it all on Dogecoin. This gamble paid off, earning him a cool $27 million. "Thank you and God bless crypto," he told a crypto-exchange rep in an online chat as he transferred his Dogecoin earnings into his bank account.

Then, according to the FBI, Rinsch embarked on a spending spree. According to the indictment, he blew through $10 million, racking up $1,787,000 in credit card bills, $2,417,000 on five Rolls Royces and a Ferrari, $638,000 on two mattresses, and $1,073,000 on lawyers to sue Netflix and assist him with his divorce. He claimed that Netflix owed him $14 million at the time.

The feds have charged Rinsch with wire fraud, money laundering, and engaging in monetary transactions involving proceeds from illegal activity. The first two charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years, while the latter charges carry a maximum of 10 years each. The streaming wars may be over, but we'll never see White Horse. It's disheartening to think that all the hard work of the cast and crew may go up in smoke, but Rinsch's antics are likely more entertaining than a sci-fi epic made up of 10-minute-long episodes about super-intelligent clones.

1. Despite the promise of a sci-fi series in the future, director Carl Rinsch was charged with fraud by the FBI for allegedly stealing $11 million from Netflix.
2. The FBI stated that Rinsch used the stolen money to finance luxury purchases and cryptocurrency investments, instead of completing the television series he committed to.
3. The planned series, titled "White Horse," was about a scientist who created a group of superintelligent clones and was set to air on Netflix, but Rinsch's actions hampered its production.
4. After being charged with fraud, money laundering, and engaging in monetary transactions involving proceeds from illegal activity, Rinsch used a portion of the remaining $11 million from Netflix to invest in Dogecoin, earning a profit of $27 million.

Read also: