It was a story that rocked the nation. And now, the first project about the brazen, broad daylight killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is on the way.
Anonymous Content and Alex Gibney’s Jigsaw Prods. are teaming up to develop and produce a documentary about the Dec. 4 fatal shooting that took place in midtown Manhattan just before Thompson was set to speak at an investor conference.
Five days after the shooting, Luigi Mangione was apprehended at a McDonald’s in Pennsylvania for the killing, adding a compelling layer to the tale given that the handsome 26-year-old was the valedictorian of his posh Maryland high school and is an Ivy League graduate. Mangione was allegedly carrying a manifesto when he was detained that referenced another documentarian, Michael Moore, whose 2007 film “Sicko” offered a searing indictment of the U.S. healthcare system. The new doc from Anonymous and Jigsaw will explore how killers are created, what this killing says about our society and the values we place on who lives and who dies.
The death of Thompson, a 20-year veteran of the health insurance giant, has exposed a division in America, with many publicly celebrating his demise, while an outpouring of support has popped up for Mangione, who allegedly used a ghost gun to carry out the shocking killing. The documentary will delve into the national conversation around Americans’ frustration with the healthcare industry and health insurance companies’ denial of claims and care, as well as rising costs.
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Mangione reportedly suffered from debilitating back pain and underwent surgery to treat it in recent years. His X bio featured an X-ray of his spine. UnitedHealthcare is known for rejecting about twice as many claims as the industry average. This coming week is expected to produce several developments in the case against Mangione, who has not yet been indicted. He has retained high-powered New York attorney Karen Friedman Agnifilo.
Gibney’s “Taxi to the Dark Side” won the documentary Oscar in 2008. He is currently in production on a film about tech giant Elon Musk and a documentary based on Salman Rushdie’s memoir “Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder.” He is repped by UTA.
The UnitedHealthcare project marks the third collaboration between Anonymous (“Spotlight,” “The Revenant”) and Jigsaw.