Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal | |
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Directed by | Chris Smith |
Produced by |
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Starring | Matthew Modine |
Distributed by | Netflix |
Release date |
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Running time | 103 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal is an American documentary film about the 2019 college admissions bribery scandal. The movie stars Matthew Modine as Rick Singer and features reenactments as well as interviews with real people involved in the scandal.
Production took place in 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic the production was delayed. [1]
The documentary was released on Netflix on March 17, 2021. [2] The documentary was the seventh-most-watched film on Netflix that week. [3]
On Rotten Tomatoes the documentary holds an approval rating of 88%. [4] Matthew Modine's performance was well received with Salon magazine writing that his performance was a "convincing interpretation of Singer's intense physicality." [5] Clarie McNear of The Ringer , thought the documentary was "delicious" although it failed "to cover much new ground." [6] Kelly Lawler of USA Today wrote that the documentary "lacks any uniqueness in its staid narrative. [7] "
On April 6, 2021, Netflix was sued for defamation by John B. Wilson and his family. [8] The Wilson family alleged that the documentary misrepresented them by portraying them as guilty and complicit in the scandal. [9] Wilson pleaded not guilty at trial, and in 2023, his conviction was overturned on appeal. [10] Wilson claims that before the release of the Netflix documentary, he provided them with evidence that proved his children earned their spot in their respective colleges. [11] However, Netflix disregarded Wilson’s evidence, and portrayed him and his family as complicity in the scandal. Wilson's son, John Wilson Jr., is a record-breaking swimmer who caught the attention of recruiters from other NCAA Division I schools, including the Air Force Academy, according to the filing. The lawsuit also claimed that Wilson’s son and daughter both earned almost perfect scores on their ACTs, scoring in the 93rd percentile. [12]
Lori Anne Loughlin is an American actress. From 1988 to 1995, she played Rebecca Donaldson Katsopolis on the ABC sitcom Full House, and reprised the role for its Netflix sequel Fuller House (2016–2018). Loughlin is also known for her roles of Jody Travis in The Edge of Night (1980–1983), Debbie Wilson in The CW series 90210 (2008–2012), Jennifer Shannon in the Garage Sale Mystery television film series (2013–2018), and Abigail Stanton in When Calls the Heart (2014–2019). She was a co-creator, producer, and star of the two seasons of The WB series Summerland (2004–2005).
Matthew Avery Modine is an American actor. He rose to prominence through his role as U.S. Marine Private/Sergeant J.T. "Joker" Davis in Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket (1987). Other films include Birdy (1984), Vision Quest (1985), Married to the Mob (1988), Gross Anatomy (1989), Pacific Heights (1990), Short Cuts (1993), Cutthroat Island (1995), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), and Oppenheimer (2023). On television, he portrayed Dr. Don Francis in the HBO film And the Band Played On (1993), the oversexed Sullivan Groff on Weeds (2007), Ivan Turing in Proof (2015), and Dr. Martin Brenner in Netflix's Stranger Things (2016–2022).
Felicity Kendall Huffman is an American actress. Over her career she has received numerous accolades including a Primetime Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award as well as a nomination for an Academy Award. She is best known for her role as Lynette Scavo in the ABC comedy-drama Desperate Housewives and her role as a transgender woman in the film Transamerica (2005).
Varsity Blues may refer to:
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Ruby Wylder Rivera Modine is an American actress, dancer and singer. She is best known for playing Sierra Morton in Shameless, and co-starring in the 2017 slasher film Happy Death Day and its sequel as Lori Spengler. She is the lead singer of the band Ruby Modine and the Disease.
Andrew E. Lelling is an American attorney who served as the United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts from 2017 to 2021. He is best known for leading Operation Varsity Blues, the federal investigation and prosecution of a massive nationwide college admissions scandal, He also oversaw the largest-ever prosecution of MS-13, which all but eliminated the notorious Salvadoran gang in the Boston area and the prosecution of six eBay employees involved in the eBay stalking scandal which involved the terrorizing of a middle-aged couple living in greater Boston, Massachusetts. His tenure was also marked by major gang and healthcare enforcement actions. Lelling, however, was also criticized by some as being "overzealous, grandstanding, and politically motivated" for his prosecution of a local trial judge who helped an undocumented immigrant charged with drug crimes avoid arrest by immigration authorities.
In 2019, a scandal arose over a criminal conspiracy to influence undergraduate admissions decisions at several top American universities. The investigation into the conspiracy was code named Operation Varsity Blues. The investigation and related charges were made public on March 12, 2019, by United States federal prosecutors. At least 53 people have been charged as part of the conspiracy, a number of whom pleaded guilty or agreed to plead guilty. Thirty-three parents of college applicants were accused of paying more than $25 million between 2011 and 2018 to William Rick Singer, organizer of the scheme, who used part of the money to fraudulently inflate entrance exam test scores and bribe college officials. Of the 32 parents named in a Federal Bureau of Investigation affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Boston, more than half had apparently paid bribes to have their children enrolled at the University of Southern California (USC).
Olivia Jade Giannulli is an American YouTuber, and daughter of fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli and actress Lori Loughlin. While in high school, Giannulli began a social media career on YouTube and Instagram. As of 2019, both accounts have amassed more than one million followers. Giannulli's fraudulent application to the University of Southern California was a prominent part of the 2019 college admissions bribery scandal.
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