The Dropout is a thrilling drama based on true events of Elizabeth Holmes, a former biotechnology entrepreneur, who was convicted of criminal fraud and is currently awaiting sentencing. This mini tv series premiered on Hulu on March 2, 2022. I really enjoyed this show and recommend it to a wide range of audiences.

Holmes started a company called Theranos in 2003 where she claimed that she could supposedly test blood by only using a drop of blood. As the company grew, she gained a lot of investors, and the company began to flourish. Journalists began investigating Theranos and ultimately figured out that the testing device being used to administer the blood test seemed suspicious. This prompted medical boards and advisories to get involved, which later showed that the device wasn’t effective and that it was giving false readings.

The Dropout is directed by Michael Showalter and stars Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes. The producers are Seyfried, Hilary Bettis, and Megan Mascena. Seyfried did a great job acting and embracing the role of Holmes.

I enjoyed this tv series because I am interested in the medical field. The show gives the audience an idea of what the medical field is like, while also showing the business side of starting a company. Although Theranos was a good idea, it backfired because of poor execution and Holmes’s unwillingness to listen to others. The show sheds a light on how prepared and organized you need to be to start your own company. The Dropout warns against taking shortcuts as Holmes rushed her prototype and forged her data. 

Even though this scandal happened a few years ago, this TV series is still very interesting. It shows behind the scene things that maybe you wouldn’t have known from the news. For example how heavily she manipulated people and how much she lied about her product. I thought the acting was good and it wasn’t cliche so you could not predict what was going to happen next because of how much she manipulated people. 

All eight episodes of The Dropout are available on Hulu. The last episode ends with the investigation of Theranos and its laboratories. The Dropout is currently not renewed for season 2. Although we may not see Holmes’s full story, the first season is well worth watching.