Lionsgate to release film about Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht

The American media company Lionsgate has acquired the rights to the crime thriller ‘Silk Road’, based on the story of the Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht. The film is scheduled to premiere on February 19, 2021, Deadline reports.

The plot is based on David Kushner’s article ‘Dead End on Silk Road’, published in Rolling Stone. Viewers will see how the largest illegal marketplace Silk Road was built, and what led to Ulbricht’s arrest.

The History of Silk Road: How Bitcoin Elevated the Darknet Economy to a New Level

The leading roles were played by Nick Robinson, known for the film ‘Jurassic World’, and Jason Clarke (‘Terminator: Genisys’). The premiere was expected in April at the New York Film Festival, but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In 2015, a court found Ross Ulbricht guilty of drug trafficking via Silk Road, conspiracy to traffic illegal substances, hacking computer networks and money laundering, as well as leading a criminal organization.

In late May 2015, the founder of the darknet marketplace was sentenced to life imprisonment.

In 2019, venture capitalist Tim Draper called for Ulbricht’s release. In March 2020, a petition with a similar demand addressed to the White House gathered 275,000 signatures.

As a reminder, on November 3 the U.S. Department of Justice confiscated related to Silk Road 69,370 BTC.

Subscribe to ForkLog news on Facebook!