US Director Accused Of Scamming Netflix Out Of Millions

Netflix hired Hollywood director Carl Rinsch to produce a new science-fiction series. Instead, according to federal prosecutors, he allegedly spent more than $1 million on luxury vehicles and crypto and allegedly eluded payments from the streaming giant.

Rinsch, who is credited with the 2013 film “47 Ronin” starring Keanu Reeves, was charged with wire fraud and money laundering, and if found guilty, he could spend decades in prison.

The indictment was unsealed on Tuesday after being filed in a New York federal court. The filmmaker, 47, was detained the same day.

Read more about ChatGPT’s complaint regarding a false “horror story.”

According to FBI Assistant Director Leslie Backschies, Carl Rinsch allegedly stole more than $11 million from a well-known streaming service to use lavish purchases and personal investments to pay for the production of a series that was promised.

Rinsch was previously alleged to be in a dispute with Netflix over a planned series that was given the name “White Horse” and later changed to “Conquest” despite never being named in the filing.

According to the indictment, the show was intended to feature a scientist who “banished” a group of powerful clones to a walled area in a Brazilian city where they began developing advanced technology and started fighting with people and one another.

It includes stills from Rinsch’s allegedly pitched-the-show “six short-form episodes.” In the end, he agreed to produce a full season of episodes with Netflix.

According to the indictment, that agreement was reached “in or about 2018.” At the height of the streaming boom, Netflix then paid “approximately $44&nbsp, million” for the show’s production between 2018 and 2019.

Rinsch’s production company received those funds, and his request for an additional $11 million to allegedly finish the project was granted.

However, according to Rinsch, the money was quickly transferred for his own use, using a number of accounts.

Luxury clothing and furniture, five Rolls-Royces, dodgy stock market purchases, investing in cryptocurrency, paying for legal fees to the streamer and managing his divorce are some of the things Rinsch allegedly purchased.

Any person who tries to defraud businesses will continue to be a target of the FBI, according to Backschies.

When AFP contacted Netflix about the situation, Netflix declined to comment.

Source: Channels TV