Why GameStop Is About To Get Its Own Movie
Thanks to the now-famous group of reddit users that turned GameStop into a meme stock, the game store is now poised to get its own movie.
This article is more than 2 years old
Who could forget last year’s unbelievable rise of Reddit stock traders and their successful GameStop ploy? It’s a classic story of the underdog sending financially prosperous businessmen into otherworldly chaos. The phenomenon was praised and criticized by people nationwide, but it turns out this story has essential criteria for a hit blockbuster movie. The events surrounding GameStop stock’s triumphant profitability will soon be documented via film.
Well-known actors Paul Dano, Sebastian Stan, Seth Rogen, and Pete Davidson will star in the upcoming picture “Dumb Money.” The movie highlights the story of these Reddit users who duped Wall Street investors by skyrocketing the price of GameStop stock. The tactic inflated GameStop’s value and hindered short-selling hedge funds and other giant companies like Bed Bath & Beyond. The movie will be based on Ben Mezrich’s nonfiction book “The Antisocial Network,” which showcases the individual personalities of the Reddit group that sparked brief pandemonium on Wall Street.
If you think this is a strange or possibly disadvantageous move on Hollywood’s part, then think again. Mezrich’s books have had a history of success in the film industry, starting with his work “The Accidental Billionaires,” adapted into the oscar-winning sensation “The Social Network,” which documents the rise and fall of Facebook. Hollywood is ready to cash in on his writing once more with the subsequent adaptation of his recent GameStop retelling. Though “Dumb Money” hasn’t started filming, it will have a rights sale this month at the 2022 Toronto Film Festival.
The GameStop movie will also be directed by the inimitable Craig Gillispie, whose previous work includes “I, Tonya” and the hit Hulu series “Pam & Tommy.” Gillispie’s prior movies mirror the underdog or troubled figures at the center of the GameStop controversy. Both “I, Tonya” and “Pam & Tommy” showcase misunderstood celebrities with troubled pasts, highlighting their faults while giving social and economic context for their actions. “Dumb Money” will likely touch on similar themes such as wealth inequality, individual adversity, and the failed promise of economic prosperity in America.
Other production companies have already covered the GameStop stock controversy, but not in a full-length movie version. In March 2022, HBO ran a two-part docuseries about the incident, each episode involving a different focus of the stock-inflation narrative. The first episode concentrates on the Reddit community called r/wallstreetbets. This subreddit is where the GameStop idea originated, led by a couple of characters highlighted in Mezrich’s nonfiction work. The second episode focuses more on trading regulations and the restrictions imposed by Robinhood, the stock exchange app, during the event’s apex.
Unfortunately for GameStop, rules enforced by trading apps quickly inhibited its meteoric monetary rise. In early 2021, GameStop stock rapidly increased from around $5 per share to $65, sending hedge fund managers and business people into a frenzy. Once Robinhood implemented restrictions, the stock gains suddenly petered off. At the end of summer 2022, GameStop shares are trading at $23 each, which is far less than its 2021 peak but more than its early pandemic value.
Before 2021, no one could believe that GameStop would be at the center of a Wall Street catastrophe, let alone have a blockbuster film about its stock value. “Dumb Money” will likely catch people’s attention worldwide, delving into the hilarity and economic factors that led to this stock-trading fiasco.
