The new Elizabeth Holmes documentary, You Can See Everything, is scheduled to hit the 2026 movie schedule in October, and the first full trailer for the upcoming A24 film gives little away. It does show more than the truly eerie teaser that dropped a couple of weeks ago, but it's still very vague. I haven’t seen the movie; only a handful of critics saw it at the Telluride Film Festival during a surprise screening. The reviews have been glowing, but I have to wonder: are people really interested in going to see a nearly three-hour documentary?
I’m All In, But How Many People Will Be
First, let me say, I’m all in on this film. I can’t wait. The reactions have been as crazy (in a good way) as the trailers for You Can See Everything have been. The few people who have seen it love it. It has a perfect 100% “fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, though there are only 11 reviews so far. As a documentary fanatic and a true crime junky, this trailer really scratches an itch for me. I can’t wait to post up in a big theater chair, get comfortable, and take this one in.
Still, it’s 174 minutes, or nearly three hours long and I have to think that is going to scare people off seeing it in theaters. Let’s be honest here, people (including me) have no problem powering through a three-part true series on Netflix, but when some people see that same running time for a movie, they wince and hesitate. I get it. I sit through a lot of long movies in theaters, so I empathize. Sometimes it’s a slog. I hope it doesn’t stop people from seeing it in theaters, but I worry it will.
Eventually, Many People Will Watch
I also have to believe that eventually, this documentary will be seen by a lot of people. I think most will wait for it to be on a streaming service. That’s when people can treat it like one of those three-part docuseries on Netflix. Watch a little, take a break, get some more popcorn, watch a little more, etc. I do think that will lessen the impact of the movie, so I do hope people will see it in theaters.
Holmes is currently serving 11+ years in prison for wire fraud relating to her disgraced company, Tharanos. This doc, from directors Lance Oppenheim and Nathan Fielder, was filmed in the days and weeks immediately prior to the fraudster reporting to prison in March of 2023. The trailer is uncomfortable, as many of Nathan Fielder’s projects tend to be, but that is what makes it so intriguing.
Fielder and Oppenheim seem to have really captured a fascinating moment in the Elizabeth Holmes story that so many of us have followed for years now, and they are obviously presenting it in a unique–if uncomfortable–way. Oppenheim’s current movie, Primetime, pushes buttons, too, but this is an even rawer look at an uncomfortable subject. Again, I can’t wait.
