Television series
Myth & Mogul: John DeLorean
A three-part documentary about John DeLorean, the charismatic car designer whose ambition, ego, and increasingly desperate schemes led him from industry darling to federal prosecution. Directed by D.A. Pennebaker with exclusive footage and interviews, it's a brisk, mesmerizing portrait of American hubris in the late seventies—a man convinced his own mythology was destiny.
If you liked this
The Dropout2022
Elizabeth Holmes' rise and fall mirrors DeLorean's almost perfectly: a visionary narrative, media seduction, and the moment when belief cannot compensate for reality. Gripping and darkly funny.
But True crime podcasts have prepared you for every beat. If you've heard the story already, the arc may feel predetermined.
Fyre2019
Another portrait of charisma colliding with chaos and federal intervention. It shares DeLorean's fascination with how a compelling narrative can suspend disbelief, even among investors and journalists.
But The tone is more comedic. If you want moral gravity instead of schadenfreude, this lands differently.
Food Network Star2005
Adam Neumann's story is DeLorean for the tech age: the same blend of vision, narcissism, and the ability to make investors believe in the man rather than the product.
But Slightly repetitive in structure. You'll see the pattern forming well before the conclusion arrives.
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The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
American Hustle2013
Both works are fascinated by the gap between image and reality, and both suggest that for a certain kind of person, image is reality. DeLorean lived American Hustle; American Hustle understands why he believed his own story.
Fiction, but structured like a master class in DeLorean's own methods: seduction through style, belief through performance, and the fine line between con artist and dreamer. Paul Thomas Anderson directed it to feel like watching a man narrate his own mythology.
But It's a caper dressed as art cinema. If you want documentary truth, the stylization might feel like it's getting in the way.
More like this (4)
The Toys That Made Us2017
A companion piece on American innovation and obsession, though focused on creation rather than destruction. Ruth Handler's vision shares DeLorean's all-consuming drive, but with happier consequences.
But The tone is celebratory rather than cautionary. You're watching success, not catastrophe.
Madoff: The Monster of Wall Street2023
A methodical unpacking of how a man builds a mythology of infallibility and how belief persists even after exposure. The psychological architecture is fascinating.
But Slower-paced. Less about the personality's appeal and more about the mechanics of the fraud itself.
The Great Hack2019
Another documentary about persuasion, data, and the distance between what we're told and what's real. Thematically adjacent to DeLorean's world of image manipulation.
But More political and less character-driven. If you're here for the personality, this pivots away from it.
Breathe2014
Both explore how belief in another person—in their greatness, their inevitability—can override evidence and reason. Respire does it through intimacy; Myth & Mogul does it through spectacle. Both ask the same question: how do we surrender to someone's mythology?
A 97-minute French film about intensity, desire, and the seductive pull of a magnetic personality over an ordinary life. Shot in a hushed, intimate style that mirrors the subtle manipulation and belief at the heart of DeLorean's appeal.
But No car, no crime, no court case. It's a psychological study, not a crime narrative. Very slow and interior if you want external plot.
