Summary

  • Director Carl Rinsch received a 30-month prison sentence for defrauding Netflix of $11 million intended for an unfinished sci-fi series.
  • After losing funds on stock options, he transformed the remaining $4 million into almost $27 million through a Dogecoin investment, as stated by prosecutors.
  • Rinsch spent his earnings on luxury items including Rolls-Royces, a Ferrari, and a $388,000 watch, and is required to repay Netflix $11 million in restitution.

A director from Hollywood, who misappropriated $11 million from Netflix meant for a television production and gambled it on cryptocurrency, is now facing prison time.

Carl Erik Rinsch, known for directing Keanu Reeves in the 2013 movie "47 Ronin," was sentenced to 30 months in prison on Monday for deceiving Netflix, concluding a series of mismanaged trades and extravagant expenditures. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff also mandated three years of supervised release and ordered Rinsch to pay $11 million in restitution.

“Carl Erik Rinsch promised to create a television show,” stated U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “Instead, he treated the $11 million designated for production as his personal gambling and luxury fund.”https://t.co/5XHj1gWFyi

— US Attorney SDNY (@SDNYnews) June 29, 2026

Netflix had previously provided Rinsch's production firm over $44 million to create a sci-fi series titled "White Horse," later renamed "Conquest." In 2020, during the COVID pandemic, he requested an additional $11 million to complete the project. However, prosecutors revealed that he diverted most of these funds into a personal brokerage account and failed to deliver the series.

Within weeks, Rinsch lost $5.9 million on risky options, including bets on a COVID vaccine manufacturer and a market downturn, as outlined in court documents. He then transferred over $4 million of the remaining funds to the crypto exchange Kraken and invested in Dogecoin.

This gamble proved to be highly profitable; as the meme coin surged, he cashed out nearly $27 million in May 2021, according to a 2023 New York Times article. "Thank you and god bless crypto," he expressed to a Kraken representative.

This financial windfall led to a spending spree, with Rinsch acquiring five Rolls-Royces, a Ferrari, a $388,000 Vacheron Constantin watch, and spending millions more on furniture, antiques, and designer clothes—totaling approximately $8.7 million, based on a forensic accountant's findings for his ex-wife. Rather than returning the funds, he filed a lawsuit against Netflix for over $14 million, claiming he was owed money; however, an arbitrator ruled against him.

A jury in Manhattan found Rinsch guilty in December on multiple charges, including wire fraud and money laundering. Although he faced a potential 90-year sentence, and prosecutors recommended five years, Rakoff opted for a shorter term after the defense presented evidence of an untreated mental health issue, with family and colleagues noting a significant change in his behavior starting around 2019. Reeves, who also produced the failed series, wrote a letter to the court advocating for leniency.