Practice English with NewsPractice with News
EntertainmentBusiness344 words3 min read

Documentary About Elizabeth Holmes Becomes a Box Office Hit

a woman is holding a book in her hands
Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
0:00 / 0:00

Listen to the story

The new documentary 'You Can See Everything' has emerged as one of the most commercially successful documentary releases in decades, drawing significant audiences to theaters at a time when the genre typically struggles to compete with mainstream films.

The film centers on Elizabeth Holmes, the former Silicon Valley entrepreneur who founded the blood-testing startup Theranos. Holmes built the company into a multibillion-dollar venture before investigations revealed that its core technology did not function as claimed, leading to her eventual conviction on fraud charges.

Directed by Nathan Fielder, known for his distinctive and often unconventional approach to filmmaking, the documentary also features the journalist whose reporting was instrumental in exposing the discrepancies between Theranos's public claims and its actual capabilities. That reporting is widely credited with triggering the scrutiny that eventually led to the company's collapse.

According to box office data cited by CNN, 'You Can See Everything' has performed exceptionally well since its release, a notable achievement given that documentaries rarely achieve the kind of mainstream commercial success typically reserved for scripted dramas or blockbuster franchises.

Industry analysts suggest the film's strong performance reflects enduring public fascination with the Holmes saga, which has already been the subject of numerous books, television series and previous film adaptations. Her story, centered on ambition, deception and the eventual unraveling of a once-celebrated business, continues to resonate with audiences years after the initial scandal broke.

The commercial success of the documentary also highlights a broader trend in which true-crime and corporate-scandal narratives have found growing audiences willing to pay for theatrical experiences rather than waiting for streaming releases. Observers note that pairing a culturally significant real-life story with a distinctive directorial voice, such as Fielder's, may have contributed to the film crossing over from niche interest into mainstream box office territory.

As ticket sales continue, 'You Can See Everything' is being positioned among the standout documentary releases of recent decades, underscoring both the lasting cultural weight of the Theranos scandal and the potential for nonfiction filmmaking to achieve significant commercial reach when paired with compelling source material.

Vocabulary7 words

documentary
a film showing real events and real people
entrepreneur
a person who starts and runs a business
conviction
an official court decision that someone is guilty
capabilities
what something is able to do
mainstream
liked or used by most people; not unusual
fascination
a strong interest in something
audiences
groups of people watching a show or film

๐Ÿ“š Ready to use these words in a real conversation?

Practice live with a real tutor on Preply.

Preply โ€” learn a language with a live tutor

Quiz

1. What was Theranos accused of doing?
2. Who directed 'You Can See Everything'?
3. True or False: Documentaries typically achieve the same box office success as scripted blockbuster films.

โœ… Nice work on the quiz!

Keep the momentum going โ€” book a live English lesson with a Preply tutor.

Discussion questions

  1. What factors do you think contribute to a documentary's commercial success?
  2. Why might stories about corporate fraud continue to attract public attention years later?
  3. Do you think theatrical releases are still important for documentaries in the streaming era?
  4. How might a filmmaker's personal style, like Nathan Fielder's, affect how a true story is told on screen?

๐ŸŽ“ Enjoyed this story?

Turn today's reading into real speaking practice with a live Preply tutor.

Preply โ€” learn a language with a live tutor

More Entertainment stories

Next story ยท Difficult

Welsh Players Push for Wales Rugby Squad Spots

โ†’