Aaron Sorkin hits refresh on Facebook in 'The Social Reckoning' — Fall Movie Preview

NEW YORK (AP) — When Aaron Sorkin made 2010’s “The Social Network,” he had heard of Facebook, he said at the time , “the way I’ve heard of a carburetor.” Sixteen years later, he has a much deeper idea of what Mark Zuckerberg’s social media empire has become.

“Back then, Facebook was a way to keep in touch with people you went to high school with. It’s something much different now,” Sorkin says. “‘The Social Network’ was about the invention of Facebook. ‘Social Reckoning’ is about what it’s become and, in particular, Facebook’s role in the rise of extremism and divisiveness.”

“The Social Reckoning,” which Sony Pictures will release Oct. 9, is one of the most timely movies arriving in theaters this fall. Last week, Sony debuted the film’s trailer the same day that Meta, Facebook’s parent company, agreed to pay up to $18 billion in penalties over claims its platform endangered children.

“The Social Reckoning” is poised to further scrutinize the social media behemoth at a time when Zuckerberg is under greater pressure than ever over the role Facebook plays in contemporary life and politics.

“When you see this movie, No. 1, I want you to be entertained,” Sorkin said in a recent exclusive interview with The Associated Press while doing the final mix on the film. “No. 2, you should be alarmed when you see the movie. I think people will be.”

“The Social Reckoning” is one of several films this fall that will take aim at the tech moguls who have helped remake American life. Alex Gibney will unveil his four-hour documentary on Elon Musk, “Musk,” on Oct. 16. Luca Guadagnino’s “Artificial” dramatizes the saga of Sam Altman, the OpenAI chief executive.

But “The Social Reckoning,” which Sorkin wrote and directed, is sure to cause a stir given not just its subject but the legacy of “The Social Network.” Often cited as among the best American movies of the century, the film — directed by David Fincher and written by Sorkin — did much to examine and mythologize the origins of Facebook. It is, Sorkin acknowledges, a lot to live up to.

“To tell you the truth, I was hesitant,” Sorkin said. “I recognize the shadow that ‘The Social Network’ casts. But I think what’s going to happen is, 10 minutes into the movie, you’ll have forgotten about that and be invested in this.”

For the 65-year-old Sorkin, “The Social Reckoning” isn’t a sequel. It’s centered on the same figure, Zuckerberg, but captures him and his company at a dramatically different stage.

“It’s as if Henry Hill showed up in ‘Casino,’” says Sorkin, alluding to the “Goodfellas” protagonist.

Sorkin began contemplating “The Social Reckoning” around 2019, the same time he wrote an op-ed in The New York Times addressed to Zuckerberg. It alleged Facebook — which had just announced it was no longer going to fact-check political ads — was responsible for “crazy lies pumped into the water supply that corrupt the most important decisions we make together.” Zuckerberg responded by quoting Sorkin’s own dialogue from “The American President” about free speech.

“I read this, and I thought: it’s just impossible that Mark and the people around Mark don’t know the difference between an unpopular opinion and a lie,” Sorkin says. “And that kind of stayed with me.”

Sorkin has since said he blames Facebook for the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021 . Eventually, he was coaxed by Sony chief Tom Rothman and agent Ari Emanuel to wade back into one of his most beloved films.

“I said at the beginning I didn’t want to write ‘Jaws 2.’ I didn’t want to return and fail,” says Sorkin. “Then I met Frances Haugen and I met Jeff Horwitz and I started thinking more about it. I realized there was a terrific story and the only reason not to do it is being scared. And that’s just not a good enough reason.”

“The Social Reckoning” stars Mikey Madison as Haugen, a former data scientist at Facebook who became a whistleblower in 2021 and testified before Congress that Facebook was tuning its algorithm to put profit before public safety. Jeremy Allen White plays Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz, a former Associated Press journalist. Jeremy Strong, not Jesse Eisenberg, plays Zuckerberg.

Zuckerberg and Meta have yet to say anything publicly about “The Social Reckoning.” The company declined to comment for this article.

In prepping “The Social Network,” Sorkin and producer Scott Rudin reached out to the company in an attempt to gain their cooperation. But after a lunch meeting, Facebook declined to participate — a blessing, Sorkin later realized. The script, Sorkin has said, “was vetted to within an inch of its life by a team of studio lawyers.” A similar process has followed on “The Social Reckoning.”

“I would have been happy to speak to him. I’ve never met Mark. I don’t know him at all,” Sorkin says. “And I don’t pretend to have any insight into how his mind works, only the results of how his mind works, and then I kind of reverse engineer it.”

Sorkin initially reached out to Eisenberg about reprising the role of Zuckerberg. Before telling Eisenberg, or anyone else, of his plans, Sorkin spent two years researching and writing the screenplay.

“I didn’t know that Jesse simply did not want to play Mark Zuckerberg ever again,” Sorkin explains. “I talked to him a lot over a three-day weekend. He was clear that he loves ‘The Social Network,’ he loves how it launched his career, and he just doesn’t like being conflated with Mark Zuckerberg. I was just really lucky that Jeremy Strong had said, ‘Hey, listen, if for some reason Jesse doesn’t want to do it.’”

“It’s replacing Joe DiMaggio with Mickey Mantle,” he adds.

Strong’s performance, Sorkin says, “is a sight to see.” While the writer-director was happy to have no direct contact with Zuckerberg, Strong emailed the Facebook co-founder.

“Mark had no greater defender than Jeremy Strong, believe me,” Sorkin says. “Every night I’d get emails from him defending Mark. On the day we were shooting Jeremy’s last scene, as soon as we were done, he ran up to me and for the first time spoke in his own voice. He had only been using Mark’s voice. He came up to me and said, ‘If I had been playing Jeff, I’d have been defending Jeff.’ It was very important to him that I know that he didn’t mean any of that.”

When “The Social Network” came out, it included a postscript note that was meant to be a shock to audiences — that Facebook then had 500 million users. It now has some 3 billion. According to a study by Pew Research, 38% of Americans get their news from Facebook.

“I have a lot of empathy for wanting to build something, wanting to create something,” Sorkin says. “He has the kind of mind that can invent an entirely new social structure — one that he does feel comfortable in because he can sit at his keyboard. And it’s one that a lot of people feel a lot more comfortable in. There’s someone they can be at their keyboard that they can’t in not-digital life.”