The Dropout is an American biographical drama miniseries that documents the disgraced biotechnology company Theranos and its founder, Elizabeth Holmes, played by Amanda Seyfried. It features an ensemble supporting cast, including Naveen Andrews, Elizabeth Marvel, William H. Macy, Stephen Fry, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Bill Irwin, Utkarsh Ambudkar, LisaGay Hamilton, Michael Ironside, Laurie Metcalf, Anne Archer, and Sam Waterston. Created by Elizabeth Meriwether, the series is based on the podcast of the same name hosted by Rebecca Jarvis and produced by ABC News.
The Dropout is the first television production to be produced by Searchlight Television. It premiered on the streaming service Hulu on March 3, 2022, and received positive reviews from critics, who praised the writing and the performances of the cast, particularly Seyfried. At the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards, the series earned six nominations, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series, with Seyfried winning for Outstanding Lead Actress. It was also nominated for Best Limited or Anthology Series or Television Film and Seyfried won Best Actress at the 80th Golden Globe Awards.
Synopsis
The Dropout, based on the ABC Audio podcast of the same name, is a series about the rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes and her company, Theranos. The show touches on experiences that likely motivated Holmes's deceptions and lies in a linear fashion, starting from her preteens and all the way to her exposure as a fraud.
Cast and characters
Main
Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes, a Stanford University dropout who goes on to found healthcare startup Theranos Naveen Andrews as Sunny Balwani, Holmes' lover and Theranos' COO
Recurring/Guest
Elizabeth Marvel as Noel Holmes, Elizabeth's mother
Michel Gill as Chris Holmes, Elizabeth's father, a former Enron employee
William H. Macy as Richard Fuisz, the Holmes' family acquaintance with a history of healthcare patents Mary Lynn Rajskub as Lorraine Fuisz, Richard's wife who behaves deferentially towards Noel Bill Irwin as Channing Robertson, Holmes' chemical engineering professor at Stanford who becomes Theranos' first board member Utkarsh Ambudkar as Rakesh Madhava, a Theranos engineer and Holmes' former TA at Robertson's research group Laurie Metcalf as Phyllis Gardner, a pharmacologist who was one of Theranos' early skeptics Stephen Fry as Ian Gibbons, Theranos' chief scientist Kate Burton as Rochelle Gibbons, Ian's supportive wife James Hiroyuki Liao as Edmond Ku, a Theranos engineer who becomes increasingly disgruntled with the company's practices Michael Ironside as Don Lucas, a venture capitalist who invested in Oracle and joins Theranos' board Hart Bochner as Larry Ellison, Oracle CEO Nicky Endres as Ana Arriola, a former Apple engineer who briefly joins Theranos' design team Amir Arison as Avie Tevanian, a Theranos board member who casts doubts about the company's progress Bashir Salahuddin as Brendan Morris, an engineer hired by Holmes to develop an altogether different prototype of the Theranos machine Shaun J. Brown as Daniel Young, a Theranos vice president who enforces the company's culture of secrecy Alan Ruck as Jay "Dr. Jay" Rosan, an eccentric Walgreens executive enamored with Silicon Valley Josh Pais as Wade Miquelon, Walgreens CFO Rich Sommer as Kevin Hunter, a Walgreens-employed lab consultant who remains skeptical of Theranos Andrew Leeds as Roland, a Walgreens executive Sam Waterston as George Shultz, former United States Secretary of State and Theranos board member Anne Archer as Charlotte Shultz, wife of George Shultz Dylan Minnette as Tyler Shultz, George Shultz's grandson who interns at Theranos before becoming a whistleblower Kurtwood Smith as David Boies, a prominent litigator whom Holmes hires as her attorney Michaela Watkins as Linda Tanner, Theranos' chief in-house counsel Sam Straley as Christian Holmes, Elizabeth's brother who is hired as Theranos' Chief of Strategic Operations Kevin Sussman as Mark Roessler, Theranos' lab director who helps break the story on its fraudulent practices Camryn Mi-Young Kim as Erika Cheung, a young Theranos employee who becomes a company whistleblower alongside Tyler Shultz Ebon Moss-Bachrach as John Carreyrou, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal who exposes Theranos' fraud LisaGay Hamilton as Judith Baker, Carreyrou's editor Garrett Coffey as Billy Evans, a hotel heir and Holmes' new boyfriend