According to a report by The New York Times, Carl Erik Rinsch, the director of the American fantasy action film “47 Ronin,” invested nearly $11 million of his Netflix series budget in stocks and cryptocurrencies, making tens of millions of dollars in profit from Dogecoin investments.
Using series budget to buy Dogecoin
The report, published by The New York Times on Wednesday, detailed the behind-the-scenes story of Carl Rinsch directing the Netflix science fiction series “Conquest.” Netflix invested $55 million in the production of this series, but has yet to receive any individual episodes.
In March 2020, Netflix acquired Carl Rinsch’s pitch and provided him with an initial budget of $44 million. 16 months later, the director requested more funding. Netflix agreed to his request and transferred $11 million to him on the condition that he complete the series.
Financial reports indicate that Rinsch used $10.5 million from the new funding to invest in the stock market, allegedly losing $5.9 million within a few weeks through options betting on a pharmaceutical company and the S&P 500 index.
Rinsch later transferred the remaining $4 million to the cryptocurrency exchange Kraken and bought Dogecoin (DOGE). It is reported that when he liquidated his DOGE position in May 2021, his account balance was close to $27 million.
Rinsch also wrote in a chat with representatives from Kraken:
According to a forensic accountant hired by Rinsch’s ex-wife for their divorce proceedings, Rinsch spent nearly $9 million of his earnings on high-end furniture, designer clothing, luxury watches worth over $380,000, five Rolls-Royces, and a Ferrari.
Lawsuit against Netflix
The New York Times report states that Rinsch initiated a secret arbitration proceeding against Netflix, alleging that the streaming platform breached the contract and owed him $14 million in compensation. Netflix denied owing Rinsch any money, calling his claims extortion.
In his testimony, Rinsch stated that the items he spent nearly $9 million on were props for “Conquest.” He later argued in the case against Netflix that these funds were actually his according to the contract, and Netflix owed him several payments totaling around $14 million.
Netflix disagreed with Rinsch’s assertions, claiming in a motion filed in July of this year that these payments depended on Rinsch meeting various output stages, which the company believes he never fulfilled. The case was heard by an arbitrator in early November and a ruling is expected soon.