Why that Elizabeth Holmes Netflix clip is so – Business News
It’s a face that will make your blood run cold.
Theranos fraudster Elizabeth Holmes has pushed herself back into the public consciousness with probably the most disconcerting smile possible within the trailer for a new Netflix documentary secretly filmed about her life.
And there’s a purpose people having such a visceral response, in line with a physique language knowledgeable who referred to as her habits “psychopathic” and “almost not human.”
Elizabeth Holmes seen in a trailer for a new documentary filmed about her earlier than she reported to federal jail. A24 / YouTube
Holmes’ wild-eyed, unblinking gaze and repeated insistence that she’s “not deceiving” filmmakers has sparked a flurry of online commentary since a trailer for the doc, titled “You Can See Everything,” was launched after its premiere on the Telluride Film Festival over the weekend.
The minute-long, close-up clip options an awkward exchange between the Silicon Valley scammer and Canadian comedian Nathan Fielder – during which Holmes’ intense stare is not possible to overlook.
“She’s got laser-focused eye contact, wide-eyed, no blinking – not even a little blinking…It’s like a stalker stare, which is what everybody is talking about,” physique language knowledgeable Susan Constantine instructed The Post.
“A lot of psychopaths do that because they’re trying to be convincing. She has the raised eyebrows, staring eyes and wide-open smile, which is also what we call ‘dooping delight,’” Constantine mentioned.
The phrase refers to “that smile a person gets if they are pulling over a big whopper and they feel like they’re being successful with it,” she defined.
“Natural expressions don’t freeze on the face – they are on and off…which is how I know it’s performative,” Constantine mentioned.
Holmes’ eerie eye contact and slight head nods all through the clip counsel “she’s trying to persuade” Fielder of what she’s saying and will even be interpreted as intimidation ways, the knowledgeable mentioned.
Taken altogether, Holmes’ questionable physique language and weird alternative of phrases reveal “massive clusters of deception,” in line with Constantine, who additionally makes a speciality of assertion evaluation.
Holmes instructed director Nathan Fielder that she is not making an attempt to deceive him within the trailer for “You Can See Everything.” A24 / YouTube
Fielder talking with Holmes within the trailer. A24 / YouTube
As the trailer begins with an excessive close-up of Holmes’ face, she tells Fielder: “I’m not that person. I can promise you that. I don’t have anything to deceive you on.”
“Of course, I’m not deceiving you. I’m engaging with you as a human being. Why would I deceive you? There’s no – there’s no reason for me to do that,” she continues.
According to Constantine, Holmes’ use of the present-tense is telling.
“It’s like saying, ‘I don’t have anything in my pocket to deceive you on – right now’…instead of just, ‘No, I’m not deceiving you,’” Constantine defined.
“She’s answering the logic behind the accusation before giving the denial.”
Holmes’ use of the phrase “of course” additionally seems calculated, suggesting it ought to “seem obvious” that she’s telling the reality. And her declaration of “I promise” indicators one more determined attempt to look persuasive, the knowledgeable mentioned.
At one other level within the clip, Holmes barely softens her voice whereas tilting her head to the facet – a shift that marks an attempt to look susceptible or likeable, Constantine mentioned.
A physique language knowledgeable instructed The Post that Holmes’ habits within the trailer is “psychopathic” and “almost not human.” A24 / YouTube
However, it was apparent from Fielder’s expressions – particularly, slight actions in his mouth – that he wasn’t shopping for what Holmes was promoting, she famous.
Overall, the Holmes depicted so far within the documentary – which was filmed simply a month earlier than she started serving an 11-year federal jail sentence in 2023 – is markedly totally different than the phony start-up wunderkind Constantine started analyzing in footage of Theranos investor conferences relationship back to 2013.
“Here, she’s not as commanding,” Constantine mentioned concerning the trailer, and pointed to the lower-octave voice Holmes adopted within the early years of her bogus company in an effort to appear more authoritative in business settings.
Holmes talking about Theranos at a Vanity Fair summit earlier than her fraud conviction. Getty Images for Vanity Fair
Today, “Her voice has softened in volume…it seems a little exhausted.”
Still, the fraudster has long gave the impression to be “performative,” Constantine mentioned, in addition to “highly aware of how [she’s] being perceived.”
“So it’s almost as if she is always acting and she’s not even in touch with her real self.”
Holmes arriving at federal courtroom in San Jose, Calif. on March 17, 2023. Bloomberg by way of Getty Images
Holmes, the founder of the now-defunct blood testing startup, was convicted in 2022 on 4 counts of wire fraud and conspiracy for dishonest buyers. She was ordered to pay $452 million in restitution.
Prosecutors mentioned Holmes lied to buyers from 2010 to 2015 by promising Theranos’ technology might run many medical checks on a single drop of blood from a finger prick.
In November 2022, she was sentenced to 11 years and three months behind bars and is housed inside the Federal Prison Camp in Bryan — the identical lockup which is home to Jeffrey Epstein’s madam, Ghislaine Maxwell.
Holmes seen jogging in FPC Bryan in Texas on Aug. 2, 2025. Toby Canham for NY Post
Holmes, nevertheless, is eligible for release on Dec. 30, 2031 after having a 12 months shaved off her sentence.
She continues to take care of her innocence, telling People final 12 months: “I refused to plead guilty to crimes I did not commit.”
Constantine – who will use Holmes as the first case research in her new e book titled “How to Spot a Liar in 7 Seconds,” which will likely be launched in February – mentioned she knew Holmes was mendacity about her technology back in 2013 — primarily based solely off of her habits.
And she didn’t mince phrases in her evaluation of the new footage: “She’s a psychopath.”
