US court jails director Carl Rinsch over $11m Netflix fraud

The American filmmaker behind the 2013 movie, 47 Ronin, Carl Rinsch, has been sentenced to 30 months in prison for defrauding streaming giant Netflix of millions of dollars, prosecutors in New York confirmed on Monday. Rinsch was convicted last year after authorities accused him of misusing about $11 million provided by Netflix in 2020 for the production of a science fiction series titled “White Horse.” According to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, the director diverted the production funds into speculative financial investments instead of using the money for the planned series. “Instead of using the money to make the show, Rinsch made risky bets on highly speculative stock options and cryptocurrency, and spent millions of dollars on luxury goods for himself,” Clayton said in a statement. Prosecutors disclosed that the filmmaker allegedly used part of the money to acquire expensive clothing, luxury furniture, a red Ferrari and five Rolls-Royce vehicles. In addition to the prison term, the 48-year-old director was ordered to forfeit $11 million. Rinsch’s legal team had appealed for a lighter sentence, arguing that the financial misconduct occurred during a period of intense professional pressure and amid what they described as a highly contentious divorce. Although prosecutors did not directly mention Netflix in court filings, the director had previously been linked to a dispute with the streaming company over the planned sci-fi project, initially titled “White Horse” before later being renamed “Conquest.” Court documents described the series as a story centred on a scientist who creates powerful clones exiled to a walled district in a Brazilian city, where they develop advanced technology and eventually clash with humans and one another. Rinsch rose to prominence with his directorial debut, “47 Ronin,” which starred Keanu Reeves. Ahead of the sentencing, Reeves reportedly wrote to the court requesting leniency for the filmmaker, describing him as an exceptional artist who struggled with tendencies toward self-sabotage.