"Extremely Dangerous" and "Psychopath": Silicon Valley Titans Turn Into Hollywood Villains

Tech industry giants and artificial intelligence (AI) billionaires in Silicon Valley are increasingly emerging as new villains in Hollywood films.

According to the U.S. tech and film industries on October 11, a series of movies and documentaries targeting major tech leaders—such as SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman—are being released consecutively.

Released on October 9, the movie "Social Reckoning" highlights the 2021 whistleblower incident that exposed the dangers of Facebook's algorithm, portraying Zuckerberg as a much darker villain than in the previous film "The Social Network."

At the time of the whistleblowing, a senior product manager at Facebook claimed that the company knew about the harms Facebook inflicted on children's mental health and other areas, yet concealed or neglected them for profit.

The director of the documentary "Musk," released on the same day, defined Musk as an "extremely dangerous figure," introducing the work as starting as a "very dark comedy and ending as a horror movie."

The tech media outlet The Verge evaluated that in the film "Artificial," Altman is depicted as a "cunning, power-hungry psychopath who lies as naturally as he breathes and uses anyone, anywhere, anytime to get what he wants."


This negative portrayal of tech leaders is interpreted as the result of a dramatic shift in public perception as concerns over AI technology deepen.

Experts note that this contrasts sharply with past films like "Jobs" or the documentary "Something Ventured," which highlighted the creativity of Silicon Valley, the cradle of innovation.

Margaret O'Mara, a professor at the University of Washington, stated, "The relationship between (people) and technology was like a passionate love affair, but such love cools down quickly," adding, "Public perception of Silicon Valley and the products created there has changed dramatically."

J.M. Tyree, editor-in-chief of "Film Quarterly," also analyzed that these characters combine archetypal villains: the greedy businessman seen in "Citizen Kane" and the mad scientist from "Frankenstein."

He further pointed out, "Popular movies act like a mirror reflecting current social anxieties," adding, "People are pondering the concentration of power in the hands of the few at the expense of the majority."

(Photo courtesy of Sony Pictures, AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.