Netflix transferred $11 million to the director to finish the series. This money did not go to filming. Rinsch spent it on cryptocurrency, stock market games, and personal expenses.
The sentence was handed down by a Manhattan federal court. Back at the end of last year, the jury found Rinsch guilty on several charges, including fraud and money laundering.
The director asked Netflix for additional money, explaining it was necessary to finish the series. But, as it turned out later, these funds never went to production.
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According to Manhattan prosecutor Jay Clayton, the millions of dollars allocated for the project were spent by Rinsch on something else entirely. He traded options, bought cryptocurrency, and then started spending the money on a luxurious lifestyle and personal expenses.
Clayton noted that this story shows a simple thing: you cannot use someone else’s money for other purposes without consequences.
Rinsch faced up to 90 years in prison, but the court handed down a much shorter sentence. The director did not admit guilt. The defense referred to his mental state at the time.
The investigation lasted about 15 months after Rinsch was arrested in March 2025. In court documents, Netflix was referred to as Streaming Company-1. American journalists later confirmed that it was indeed Netflix.
Rinsch Made $27 Million on Dogecoin
Initially, Netflix allocated $44 million to Rinsch for the sci-fi series White Horse. Later, the project was named Conquest. Then the director asked for another $11 million to finish filming. The platform transferred the money in March 2020.
Instead of working on the series, most of the amount went to the stock market. About $10.5 million was invested by Rinsch in options on pharmaceutical company stocks and the S&P 500 index. The trades failed, and within a few weeks he lost about half of that amount. The remaining funds he sent to Kraken and bought Dogecoin. Here he was luckier. According to The New York Times, after selling DOGE in May 2021, Rinsch made about $27 million.
But this money also did not go to the series. According to investigators, about $10 million was spent by Rinsch on personal needs. The money was spent on a variety of expenses: almost $2 million went to credit cards, another $1 million — to lawyers in the dispute with Netflix. The director spent $3.8 million on furniture and antiques, and another $2.4 million on a collection of five Rolls-Royce and one Ferrari. In addition, more than $650,000 was spent on watches and designer clothes.
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The series itself was never seen by viewers. The project remained unfinished, and the funds that Netflix allocated for its production were not returned to the company.
Prosecutors Asked for Five Years in Prison
Rinsch was convicted on one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. Each carried up to 20 years. The case also included five more counts related to illegal financial operations, each carrying 10 years.
The prosecution requested five years in prison for the director. The defense sought a sentence not involving imprisonment. Lawyers cited Rinsch‘s mental health issues. Family and friends told the court that his behavior changed dramatically at that time. Keanu Reeves also sent a letter in his support.
The judge settled on two and a half years in prison. After release, Rinsch will spend another three years under supervision. In addition, the court ordered the confiscation of $11 million and imposed a mandatory fee of $700.
Netflix was left without money and without a finished series in this story. Rinsch received a prison sentence and a high-profile trial, in which a science fiction budget turned into bets on Dogecoin, options, and luxury purchases.
