Netflix director buys Dogecoin instead of filming a series, nets $27m

Carl Erik Rinsch, the director of 47 Ronin, received funding from Netflix to shoot a new series and used part of it to buy cryptocurrency Dogecoin. The New York Times reports.

According to the publication, from November 2018 to March 2020 the streaming service advanced the director a total of $55 million to develop the science-fiction series Conquest. However, none of the episodes was ever completed.

Meanwhile, $11 million of that sum was invested in the stock market, and he lost almost all of the investments. In May 2021 he bought $4 million worth of Dogecoin on the Kraken exchange and earned $27 million.

He spent the money on five Rolls-Royce cars, Ferraris and expensive Swiss watches from Vacheron Constantin.

Netflix is currently suing Rinsch, accusing him of breaching the contract. The director contends that the fault lies with the company itself, which delayed several payments totaling $14 million.

The proceedings are being held in private. A ruling is expected soon.

Earlier, Vitalik Buterin earned more than $4 million on investments in Dogecoin, having bought cryptocurrency for $25,000 in 2016.