Film 'You Can See Everything' Sparks Debate Over Elizabeth Holmes Portrayal

Nathan Fielder’s documentary-style film You Can See Everything follows a month-long period in which the filmmaker lives with Elizabeth Holmes, the former Theranos CEO, her partner Billy Evans and their children before Holmes begins her prison sentence. The film presents Holmes denying any wrongdoing and questions whether the press and legal system unfairly targeted her. After a recent screening, Fielder said he is still trying to understand his experience with Holmes, adding that he hopes audiences will help clarify what he witnessed.

Critics note that the film offers limited factual context, omitting details such as the cost of the beach house where Holmes and Evans stayed and the use of a private jet for travel to Texas. Biographer John Carreyrou and other journalists have emphasized that the Theranos case involved deliberate fraud, a point the film does not directly address. Some viewers have expressed increased sympathy for Holmes, interpreting the ambiguous presentation as suggesting she may be a victim of broader systemic or gender-related biases.

Biotech journalist Matthew Herper and former Theranos whistleblower Tyler Shultz have described the film as intentionally ambiguous, focusing on word choices rather than concrete evidence. Others, including science journalist Elizabeth Plank, argue that the narrative risks framing Holmes’s misconduct as a product of personal trauma, potentially reinforcing gendered stereotypes about female ambition.

The film’s approach has also generated commercial offshoots, such as merchandise referencing Holmes’s alleged victimhood. Observers caution that while the documentary raises questions about narrative framing, it may also contribute to a simplified or sympathetic reinterpretation of a case that courts have already judged as fraudulent.