Gibney's 'Musk' Goes Wide: Who Holds the Rights, and the Numbers

TL;DR: Alex Gibney’s documentary Musk opened Friday, Oct. 9, on four screens in New York and Los Angeles. It took in an estimated $68,900 for the weekend, $17,225 per screen, according to Variety and The Hollywood Reporter. Distributor Bleecker Street expands it nationwide on Friday, Oct. 16. Three companies hold the rights. Bleecker Street has the U.S. theatrical release, HBO Documentary Films pre-bought North American streaming and TV, and Universal Pictures Content Group took the overseas deal, according to Deadline’s 2025 report on the sale. The HBO piece now sits with a different owner: Skydance completed its acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, HBO’s parent, on Oct. 6. Before release, YouTube, Meta, TikTok and X all refused Bleecker Street’s paid ads, the Associated Press reported. YouTube and Meta later reversed course. Elon Musk has attacked the film and its director in posts on X.

This is a business read of the film’s release: who holds what, what the first numbers show and what has been put on the record. The HBO ownership change comes from filings we covered in what Warner Bros. executives received at the deal price. For more entertainment stories told through filings and official numbers, see the Entertainment & Media hub.

What the film is, per the festival listing

The film’s official listing at the Venice International Film Festival, where it premiered out of competition, gives the basics:

• Director and screenwriter: Alex Gibney
• Production: Jigsaw Productions (Gibney, Jessie Deeter, Erin Edeiken), Closer Media (Zhang Xin), Anonymous Content and Double Agent
• Running time: 225 minutes plus a 10-minute intermission

That runtime matters for the box office. Variety called the opening returns notable because the runtime limits each theater’s daily showtimes.

Who holds which rights

Rights	Holder	What was announced
U.S. theatrical	Bleecker Street	Acquired in August 2025, to release the film “ahead of its premiere on HBO Max” (Deadline)
North American streaming and TV	HBO Documentary Films	”Previously pre-bought North American streaming and TV rights” (Deadline)
International	Universal Pictures Content Group	Black Bear, the international sales agent, “made the overseas deal with UPCG” (Deadline)

Two parts of that table have since come into question, on the record:

• HBO. WBD’s Oct. 6 closing filing shows Warner Bros. Discovery, HBO’s parent, was acquired by Skydance Corporation, formerly Paramount Skydance. The AP reports “concerns” about whether Musk will reach HBO as planned. It also noted that Larry Ellison, the father of the merged company’s CEO, David Ellison, “is friendly with Musk.” Gibney told the AP: “Would Musk be able to call Larry or David and say, you know, don’t put this doc on? Yeah.” None of the reports cited here describe a change to the HBO deal.
• Universal. Variety reports that Gibney told The New York Times why he believes Universal Pictures hesitated to plan an international release. Universal declined to comment to the Times beyond an earlier statement: “We’ve always been committed to releasing this film, and our plans haven’t changed,” Variety reports.

The release timeline

• Aug. 2025: Bleecker Street acquires U.S. theatrical rights (Deadline).
• Sept. 2026: World premiere at Venice, followed by the North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (Deadline).
• Sept. 14: Bleecker Street moves the release up a week, to Oct. 9 (TheWrap). Deadline said it had been set for Oct. 16 and called the move a response to “intense interest.”
• Oct. 6: Skydance completes its acquisition of WBD, HBO’s parent (WBD’s closing 8-K).
• Oct. 9: Opens on four screens in New York and Los Angeles.
• Oct. 16: Nationwide expansion (AP).

The opening numbers

	Musk
Screens	4 (New York and Los Angeles)
Weekend gross	$68,900
Average per screen	$17,225

The figures come from Variety and The Hollywood Reporter; THR put the gross at “around $68,900.” On Sunday, Oct. 11, Deadline reported that Bleecker Street was “eyeing a circa $70K three-day gross” on four screens, a per-theater average of $17,200.

The same weekend, Sony’s The Social Reckoning opened, and Variety called it a flop while The Hollywood Reporter’s headline said it “bombs.” TheWrap asked whether that result “spell[s] trouble” for Artificial and Musk. Musk, though, opened on four screens, so the two openings measure different things.

The ad refusals

The AP reported that Bleecker Street “has not been able to run paid advertisements on several major social media platforms.” As of Sept. 25, it said, YouTube, Meta, TikTok and X had all refused. YouTube and Meta later reversed course. According to the AP, they said the ads had been flagged for “political content.” The AP did not report a change at TikTok or X.

What Musk and Gibney have said

The AP says Musk did not respond to its request for comment. His public statements, as reported:

• He called the project a “hit piece” when it was announced three years ago (AP).
• After the Venice premiere he wrote that dog feces are “worth more respect than Gibney” (AP).
• In posts on X over recent weeks, he has called Gibney an “idiot,” a “horrible human” and a “shill for the far left,” among other names (AP).

TheWrap reported that Musk’s attorney sent a warning letter after the Venice premiere. It quotes the letter: “You are on notice, before release, that the insinuation is false, that the material refuting it is public, and that you chose not to be told the rest.” According to TheWrap, the letter from Musk’s attorney, Alex Spiro, said Musk’s team had reached out to Gibney several times to present his side and was refused. Spiro wrote: “This project did not begin as an inquiry. It began with a conclusion.” The AP says there “have been threats of lawsuits from Musk’s camp.”

Gibney says the filmmakers tried to get Musk’s side. He told The New York Times, as Variety reports, that producer Jessie Deeter “had his cellphone number” and wrote “about how much we wanted his perspective,” and “His response was writing ‘Gibney is a douche’ on Twitter.” On the legal threats, he told the AP: “We also have a lawyer who’s really, really good. Because, of course, we vet this stuff very carefully.”

What could go right / What could go wrong

For the film’s release, from the facts on the record.

What could go right

• A $17,225 per-screen average on four screens, despite a runtime that limits showings, ahead of a nationwide expansion on Oct. 16.
• The distribution chain covers U.S. theaters, North American TV and streaming, and international markets, with no cancellation reported in the coverage cited here.
• Two of the four platforms that refused paid ads (YouTube and Meta) reversed course, per the AP.

What could go wrong

• Variety says the film’s commercial appeal “will be tested” as it rolls out nationwide, and the runtime limits each theater’s daily showtimes.
• HBO’s parent changed hands on Oct. 6, and the AP reports concerns about whether the film will reach HBO as planned. Gibney says he believes Universal hesitated over the international release; Universal’s earlier statement says its plans haven’t changed.
• TikTok and X had refused paid ads as of Sept. 25, and the AP’s Oct. 12 report did not mention a reversal by either. Musk’s lawyer has sent a warning letter.

FAQ

Q When does the Musk documentary come out nationwide?

A Bleecker Street opened Alex Gibney's Musk in New York and Los Angeles on Oct. 9, 2026, and expands it to theaters nationwide on Friday, Oct. 16, according to the AP.

Q Will the Musk documentary be on HBO Max?

A HBO Documentary Films pre-bought North American streaming and TV rights, and the theatrical release was set to come before an HBO Max premiere, Deadline reported in 2025. The AP reports concerns about that plan after Skydance acquired HBO's parent on Oct. 6; none of the reports cited here describe a change.

Q How long is the Musk documentary?

A The Venice festival lists it at 225 minutes plus a 10-minute intermission.

Q How much did the Musk documentary make at the box office?

A An estimated $68,900 from four screens in its opening weekend (Oct. 9–11, 2026), an average of $17,225 per screen, according to Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.

Q What has Elon Musk said about the documentary?

A Musk called it a "hit piece" when it was announced, and in recent posts on X has attacked Gibney personally, the AP reports. TheWrap reported a warning letter from Musk's attorney after the Venice premiere. Musk did not respond to the AP's request for comment.