A previously unannounced documentary about Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes, directed by Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim, made its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival on September 6. Titled ‘You Can See Everything,’ the A24 film was produced in secret over approximately three years and is scheduled for a theatrical release in October. The documentary began filming 34 days before Holmes reported to federal prison in 2023 to serve an 11-year sentence for defrauding investors.
The film runs 174 minutes and is described as a hybrid documentary that pushes the boundaries of the genre. Fielder, known for ‘Nathan For You’ and ‘The Rehearsal,’ appears onscreen as an interviewer, while Oppenheim, whose credits include ‘Some Kind of Heaven’ and ‘Primetime,’ serves as co-director. The project was conceived at a magic show, and the filmmakers have admitted they did not have a clear plan when they began.
Elizabeth Holmes granted the crew access to her home in Del Mar, California, where she was living with her partner, California hotel heir Billy Evans, and their two children. According to the film’s official synopsis, ‘Thirty-four days before she’s sent to prison, notorious Silicon Valley founder Elizabeth Holmes invites a skeptical film crew to document her every move. What begins as an intimate portrait of an enigmatic felon becomes a mind-bending three-year journey into the abyss’.
The documentary features extensive access to Elizabeth Holmes and Evans, with scenes that include Evans allowing cameras to film him showering. Fielder questions Holmes about her conviction, and she maintains her innocence throughout. In one scene, Fielder asks Elizabeth Holmes and Evans if they have heard of the comedy duo Abbott and Costello, and he proceeds to show them the ‘Who’s On First’ routine.
Fielder has said he remains uncertain about what to make of Elizabeth Holmes after spending three years with her. ‘I really am struggling to this day to understand exactly what I experienced,’ Fielder said during a post-screening Q&A. ‘And one of the things I’m genuinely excited about is for this movie to come out and for people to help me understand what I experienced. Truly, to this day, I don’t quite know what I went through’. He added that he and Oppenheim could not reach a consensus on what they were capturing. ‘We’re all smart and we’re really working at the top of our intelligence—why can’t we make sense of what’s happening in this house?’
A24 released a teaser trailer for the documentary to coincide with the Telluride screening. The trailer shows Fielder and Elizabeth Holmes maintaining intense eye contact. ‘I don’t have anything to deceive you on,’ Holmes tells Fielder in the teaser. ‘Of course I’m not deceiving you. I’m engaging with you as a human being. Why would I deceive you? There’s no reason for me to do that’. Fielder responds, ‘OK. Alright. OK, good chat,’ before asking, ‘You’re being real right now?’ Holmes replies, ‘I’m always being real’.
The Telluride screening was held under strict secrecy, with audience members required to lock their cell phones and electronic devices in bags before entering the theater. The documentary had not been previously announced, and its existence was revealed on the day of the premiere. Fielder had been reported to have made multiple visits to Holmes at FPC Bryan, the minimum-security federal prison camp in Texas where she is serving her sentence.
Holmes was convicted in 2022 on four counts of defrauding investors in Theranos, the blood-testing company she founded at age 19. She was sentenced to 11 years and three months in prison and began her sentence in May 2023. ‘You Can See Everything’ is scheduled for a theatrical release in October.
