Hollywood writer-director Carl Erik Rinsch has been arrested for scamming Netflix out of $11 million for a science fiction series that was never completed, instead using the funds “to finance lavish purchases and personal investments,” according to federal authorities.
Rinsch is facing wire fraud and money laundering charges over his alleged scheme to defraud the streaming giant out of millions of dollars, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York announced in a news release on Tuesday.
Between 2018 and 2019, Netflix acquired Rinsch’s “White Horses,” an unfinished sci-fi show set to focus on super-intelligent clones, for a cool $44 million, prosecutors said. A year later, the filmmaker, best known for directing “47 Ronin,” requested another $11 million to wrap production, but he transferred nearly all of that money into a personal account. He lost more than half the pot with a “number of extremely risky purchases of securities,” all the while telling Netflix the show was “moving forward really well,” per the indictment.
Prosecutors said Rinsch dumped the remaining funds into the cryptocurrency market, which proved to be a profitable move. He then allegedly spent more than $3.7 million on furniture and antiques; upwards of $2.4 million on luxury cars, including a fleet of Rolls-Royces and a Ferrari; and more than $600,000 on watches and clothing.
Rinsch is also accused of racking up $1.7 million in credit card bills and spending over $1.4 million on divorce lawyers as well as lawyers to sue Netflix for “even more money,” according to the indictment.
The filmmaker, who was arrested in West Hollywood on Tuesday, did not enter a plea during his initial court appearance in Los Angeles. He posted his $100,000 bond later the same day.
Netflix has declined to comment on the case.
With News Wire Services
