# The Altruists: Crypto Drama Unfolds

> Netflix's The Altruists reveals Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison's dysfunctional crypto partnership.
- Title: The Altruists: Crypto Drama Unfolds · AV Club | Shortify
- Summary: Netflix's The Altruists reveals Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison's dysfunctional crypto partnership. Netflix's The Altruists series depicts Sam…
- Keywords: the altruists, sam bankman-fried, caroline ellison, ftx, effective altruism, netflix, anthony boyle, julia garner, graham moore, jacqueline hoyt, entertainment, culture
- Source: AV Club — https://avclub.com/the-altruists-netflix-fall-tv-preview
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: the altruists, sam bankman-fried, caroline ellison, ftx, effective altruism, netflix, anthony boyle, julia garner, graham moore, jacqueline hoyt, entertainment, culture
## The Altruists preview
Showrunners Graham Moore and Jacqueline Hoyt preview Netflix's true-crime drama about Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX collapse.

> In November 2022, everyone watched Sam Bankman-Fried’s $32 billion cryptocurrency empire collapse at a dizzying speed.
## Bankman-Fried's conviction
Bankman-Fried was convicted of wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering in 2023 with Caroline Ellison as the star witness.

> Bankman-Fried was, in fact, convicted of wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering in 2023, with his ex-girlfriend/former CEO, Caroline Ellison, as the star witness against him.
## The Altruists' focus
The series explores Bankman-Fried and Ellison's on-again, off-again partnership and their effective altruism mission.

> The miniseries explores the instant fireworks between Bankman-Fried (Anthony Boyle) and Ellison (Julia Garner) when they met while working at a Wall Street firm in 2015.
## The Altruists' timeline
The series alternates between two timelines six years apart to build suspense about their financial crimes.

> The Altruists alternates between two timelines set six years apart, with Moore noting that his intention was to build suspense of how and why these crimes happened.
## The Altruists' premise
Bankman-Fried and Ellison aimed to pursue effective altruism but turned into people who committed financial crimes.

> I genuinely believe the two of them got into this to make the world a better place, but turned each other into people who did the exact opposite of what they set out to do.
## The Altruists' casting
Julia Garner and Anthony Boyle were cast as Bankman-Fried and Ellison after intense auditions and preparation.

> I remember she came into my tiny Silver Lake office on a Saturday afternoon in LA and stayed for four hours.
## The Altruists' ensemble
The series features a wide-ranging ensemble including Madison Hu and Matt Rife as key FTX executives.

> I had never seen Matt’s stand-up comedy before, but he gave an amazing audition and brought a naturalism to it.
## The Altruists' ethical approach
The showrunners emphasized ethical storytelling by blending documented facts with educated imagination.

> It required poring over everything we could get our hands on, including thousands and thousands of pages of trial transcripts.
## Key takeaway

Netflix's The Altruists series depicts Sam Bankman-Fried and Caroline Ellison's failed effective altruism mission leading to financial crimes.