Just as a warning, there are some very minor spoilers below for The Social Reckoning, which hit the 2026 movie schedule this weekend, but nothing that would ruin the movie for those who haven’t seen it.
I like The Social Reckoning. I know reviews for the Aaron Sorkin-led drama have been pretty mid, but I’m still a sucker for Sorkin’s writing. I thought all the acting performances were good, and while I don’t think it’s as slick or cool-looking as the David Fincher-directed The Social Network, I think Sorkin did a fine job directing this “spiritual sequel.” I haven’t gotten in the weeds with how historically accurate The Social Reckoning is, but I know that Sorkin took some artistic liberties with the story. I know the actors chose not to meet the people they were playing as well, but as a movie, I think it delivers.
The movie wraps up in a good spot, with whistleblower Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison) testifying before Congress in October 2021. That isn’t the end of Haugen’s battle with Facebook.
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After Congress
Aaron Sorkin picked a natural place to end his movie, but the months and years after Haugen testified have been busy, too. After her testimony, Haugen has filed a number of complaints against her former employer with the Securities and Exchange Commission, both before and after her testimony. Most of those are related to the files she leaked to reporter Jeff Horowitz, portrayed by Jeremy Allen White in The Social Reckoning. Horowitz subsequently reported on them in The Wall Street Journal’s series called “The Facebook Files.”
State attorneys general across the country have also filed multiple lawsuits against Facebook and its parent company, Meta, based on her leak and testimony. Haugen herself has also testified in front of Parliament in the United Kingdom and the European Parliament in the weeks after her appearance on The Hill. She has also reportedly worked with the French Parliament and with the Federal Trade Commission back in the U.S. Haugen has also started a non-profit organization, Beyond the Screen with the goal of making social media “safer, more transparent, and more accountable.”
Big Changes In Her Personal Life, As Well
Haugen, as seen in the movie, relocated to Puerto Rico, where she still lives today. In 2021, she eloped on a Puerto Rican beach with Alex Newman, and together they have one child and still live in Puerto Rico. This is Haugen’s second marriage. The first came before the time period covered in The Social Reckoning. Haugen has also written a memoir about her experience with The Facebook Files and the era the movie covers, called The Power of One: How I Found the Strength to Tell the Truth and Why I Blew the Whistle on Facebook.
Though she and Madison didn’t meet before Madison made the movie, the two recently sat down for an interview together with Time, and she revealed that Sorkin used the book for some of his source material while writing the film.
The Social Reckoning is currently in theaters, and while critics haven’t loved the movie and its box office results don’t look spectacular, I think it’s well worth anyone’s time. I’ve never laughed so hard at a movie that made me so mad. And I mean that in a good way.