Mad Over Stories Team There’s a specific pleasure in watching a con unravel from the safety of your couch — the audacity, the red flags everyone missed, the moment it all collapses. The best scam documentaries don’t just gawk; they show you exactly how smart people got fooled. These are the ones worth watching, with the definitive books to read next.
Some links below are affiliate links; see our affiliate disclosure.
The Corporate Cons
The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley (2019) — The rise and spectacular fall of Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos, the blood-testing startup that was worth $9 billion and tested nothing reliably. The definitive account is the book that broke the story:
Bad Blood
The Pulitzer-adjacent investigation that exposed Theranos — a jaw-dropping, meticulously reported thriller that happens to be entirely true.
View on Amazon →LuLaRich (2021) — The story of LuLaRoe, the leggings company that turned into an alleged pyramid scheme, told with just enough dark comedy to make the exploitation land.
The Personal Grifters
Inventing Anna and the documentaries around Anna Sorokin — the fake German heiress who conned New York’s elite out of a fortune with nothing but confidence and unpaid hotel bills. Her story is told firsthand by the friend she scammed:
My Friend Anna
The insider account by the Vanity Fair photo editor Anna Delvey befriended, then stuck with a $62,000 bill. Infuriating and impossible to put down.
The Tinder Swindler (2022) — Netflix’s viral hit about a con man who posed as a diamond-mogul’s son to defraud women he met on dating apps. A study in how charm and urgency override common sense.
Fyre (2019) — The luxury music festival that became a disaster of cheese sandwiches and FEMA tents. A perfect portrait of influencer-era hype colliding with reality.
Read the full story
The best scam docs almost always have a better book behind them. For more real-world intrigue, see our guide to the best true crime books and the best true crime documentaries on Netflix.
