Hollywood Finally Takes Notice of Crypto
Netflix has started production on “One Attempt Remaining,” a romantic comedy centered around cryptocurrency. This marks what might be the first mainstream Hollywood film to really focus on blockchain technology as a central plot element. It’s interesting that it took this long, honestly. Until now, crypto mostly showed up in indie films, direct-to-video crime stories, or as a quick way to signal “futuristic” in bigger productions.
Cutter Hoderine, who directed the indie crypto thriller “Cold Wallet,” mentioned something that stuck with me. He said crypto still feels more fringe in films than it actually is in real life. Especially now, with the U.S. government pushing digital currencies in various ways, and Wall Street treating Bitcoin almost like a regular market indicator. The disconnect between reality and representation is pretty noticeable.
Why Crypto Took So Long to Reach the Screen
Leo Matchett from Web3 film fund Decentralized Pictures offered a simple explanation: people didn’t really understand crypto until recently. He compared it to how films in the late 90s and early 2000s barely touched the internet. Once the web became part of daily life, movies about hackers and online activity started appearing everywhere. Crypto seems to be following that same path, but maybe a bit slower.
Matchett made a good point about limitations. Films reflect our daily lives, and if crypto isn’t part of that daily experience for most people, it won’t show up much in art either. In “Cold Wallet,” crypto basically functions as just the payment method—a “device of value,” as Matchett put it. It could have been gold bars or cash; the story structure remains the same.
The Persistent Negative Portrayal
There’s a pattern worth noting here. When crypto does appear on screen, it’s usually linked to crime. Films like 2019’s “Crypto” and 2020’s “Money Plane” connect it to money laundering. Even in big productions like “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning,” crypto shows up in shady deals. The portrayal tends to be negative even when crime isn’t involved—often associated with obnoxious wealthy characters or “crypto bro” antagonists.
Viviane Ford, who created the web series “Crypto Castle,” had some thoughts about why this happens. She spent four years living with crypto enthusiasts in San Francisco and turned that experience into her show. “They did it to themselves,” she said bluntly. The culture that embraced memes like Pepe and Doge, that wrapped Lamborghinis in internet jokes—it created its own narrative problem.
Ford also mentioned the financial losses from FTX and Terra collapses. “Crypto is gambling and it just tried to have a sexier version of how to frame it,” she observed. It’s a harsh assessment, but one that explains some of the skepticism in mainstream portrayals.
Shifting Perspectives and Future Potential
Things might be changing, though. “One Attempt Remaining” apparently uses crypto wallet mechanics and seed phrases as actual plot devices, not just background decoration. Ford’s own “Crypto Castle” tries to present more nuanced characters—she wanted them to be likable, which she admits was challenging with four crypto bros.
Matchett believes the technology has real potential that hasn’t been shown properly yet. The problem, he thinks, is that people don’t fully understand crypto, and films don’t have enough time to explain it properly unless they’re documentaries. But eventually, someone will find a simple way to present it, maybe wrapped in a narrative about centralized versus decentralized power.
He predicts crypto will become a bigger part of the global economy over the next few decades. When that happens, it’ll naturally show up more in heist films, adventure stories, and probably romantic comedies too. The technology might need to become more ordinary before it can become ordinary on screen.
What’s interesting is the lack of crypto product placement in films so far. Matchett suggested this might be because crypto market cycles don’t align with film development timelines. Companies that exist when a film starts production might not be around when it finishes. The volatility creates practical problems for long-term partnerships.
Maybe that’s part of the challenge—crypto moves fast, but films take years. By the time a movie comes out, the technology and culture might have changed completely. Still, Netflix moving forward with a crypto-themed comedy suggests something is shifting. Whether it’s the beginning of a trend or just an experiment remains to be seen.
