‘Fyre Fraud’ Documentarian Takes on (and Pays) George Santos

The scammy, salacious saga of George Santos’ fraudulent life and short-lived congressional career will soon get the documentary treatment.

According to The New York Times the project, which is already in the works, will be directed by self-proclaimed “scammer whisperer” and Fyre Fraud documentarian Jenner Furst — who has also already secured Santos’ participation in the film and plans to pay him an “archival materials fee.”

Furst is the award-winning director behind projects including TIME: The Kalief Browder Story, LuLaRich, and the smash hit Hulu documentary Fyre Fraud, which chronicled the disastrous, extremely public implosion of Fyre Festival and the downfall of fraudster Billy McFarland. According to the Times, Furst secured McFarland’s participation in his 2019 documentary by offering him an archival materials fee to compensate him for interviews and licensing rights, and has pursued a similar arrangement with Santos.

While Furst did not disclose how much money he had offered the disgraced former Republican congressman to participate in the upcoming project, he told the Times that the fee would grant him access to “a lot of personal stuff that people have never seen,” including photos and videos provided by Santos.

“The only way that people can get their money back is somehow for there to be money created, to put money in their hands,” Furst said in response to questions from the Times regarding the ethics of paying known fraudsters for their participation in documentaries about their scams.

Before his expulsion from Congress earlier this month, the ex-New York representative was the subject of a congressional ethics investigation, which found evidence that Santos had spent campaign funds on OnlyFans, Botox, Hermes accessories, spa treatments, and Sephora beauty hauls. This combined with his habitual lies and the preexisting criminal allegations against Santos of donor identity theft and credit card fraud — even against another lawmaker — led to a historic vote to forcibly remove him from the House of Representatives.

Santos will inevitably join Billy McFarland — as well as figures like Anna Delvey, Elizabeth Holmes, and Bernie Madoff —- in an exclusive club where one’s name is synonymous with fraud. Yet even if Santos’ reputation and political career are shot, it hasn’t stopped him from capitalizing on the drama of his downfall.

The former congressman is reportedly making more money off Cameo videos than his salary as a member of Congress. Comedian Ziwe claimed that Santos asked three times to be paid for his participation in their tit-for-tat, “jokester” vs. “national joke” interview. Santos denied any such request was ever made.

Furst’s documentary isn’t even the first Santos-related film project to have been announced since the congressman was booted from office. TV giant HBO has already purchased the rights to Mark Chiusano’s book The Fabulist: The Lying, Hustling, Grifting, Stealing, and Very American Legend of George Santos, and plans to adapt it into a film produced by Veep and Succession’s Frank Rich. It is unknown if Santos has been offered any sort of compensation for that project.

What is abundantly clear is that the former lawmaker is swimming in the public fascination and proceeds of his notoriety. But — if Furst’s rationale for paying out Santos holds true — he may not keep the latter for long. Santos is expected to go to trial next year over the slew of white-collar crimes he’s been accused of, and maybe that archival materials fee will underwrite his restitution to the many constituents and donors he allegedly defrauded.

More from Rolling Stone

• George Santos Swears He Can Name All Those Other Frauds in Congress

• George Santos Is Making More Money on Cameo Than in Congress

• George Santos Is Very Clearly Relishing His Unemployment

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