The GameStop saga has captivated the attention of everyone on the internet, so it’s no surprise that Hollywood would jump at the chance of bringing it to the big screen. Filmmakers are known for taking real-life, gripping situations and making them into award-winning motion pictures. Box office hits like The Wolf of Wall Street, Molly’s Game, and War Dogs just to name a few. With the stock market chaos still unfolding, it’s hard to believe anyone would want to get started on a movie without knowing the ending, but production companies have already begun lining up.
On January 31, 2021, Deadline first reported that film studio, MGM, bought the rights to an upcoming book based on the GameStop saga called The Antisocial Network. The book proposal was written by the author, Ben Mezrich. If his name sounds familiar to you, it should. Mezrich is the writer of multiple books-turned-major motion pictures including, the Golden Globe-winning biopic, The Social Network, and heist film, 21.
MGM isn’t the only studio interested in this enticing storyline as it was reported that Netflix has already begun discussing a film adaptation, tapping Mark Boal as the screenwriter and Netflix heartthrob, Noah Centineo as the star. It doesn’t stop there as documentary studio XTR and production company Optimist have started working on a documentary centered around WallStreetBets. Jamie Rogozinski, the founder of WallStreetBets, has even sold his life rights to RatPac Entertainment. The production company known for Avatar, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman plans to set the film around Rogozinski and his role in the GameStop stock surge.
GameStop Saga Explained
For anyone confused about the still-developing stock scandal that we will all soon be watching on the big screen, here is a breakdown of the basics.
A group of individual traders in the subreddit group r/wallstreetbets bought and held a large amount of GameStop stock in an attempt to force the hedge funds and financial institutions that had bet against GameStop to buy back shares. This would, in turn, inflate the prices and make the Reddit users a lot of money if they were to sell their shares. This tactic is known as “short squeezing” and is a well-known practice for hedge funds and investment firms, but almost unheard of from individual traders to this extent.
Although it would have been easy money for these Reddit users to sell their shares, a lot of them vowed to hold onto them as long as possible, perhaps as a way to get revenge on Wall Street for the financial collapse in 2008. These billionaire hedge funds have not been taking it well as many organizations have expressed their anger following recent events. Even Jordan Belford, who is notorious for pleading guilty for fraud in connection with stock-market manipulation, has come forward in defense of the Reddit users. “I think it’s laughable for the hedge funds to cry foul after they do this every single day on a daily basis,” said Belfort, “Manipulate stocks, box out the small investor.”
This upset appears to be a massive win for the small guy as it seems the rich have been getting richer for years while everyday Americans suffer the consequences. Senator Elizabeth Warren said it best, “For years, the same hedge funds, private equity firms, and wealthy investors dismayed by the GameStop trades have treated the stock market like their own personal casino while everyone else pays the price.”
“Eat the rich” is a movement that most probably think is a joke, but the GameStop saga has proven that in the new age of technology people are willing to come together for the joint goal of holding the unethically rich accountable.
