Uncover the secrets of the CIA in teaser for Netflix’s Wormwood

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

"You are the men who know the secrets. We are the men who keep the secrets."

Best known for his documentaries such as THE THIN BLUE LINE and THE FOG OF WAR, Errol Morris' upcoming docu-drama series will uncover the secrets of the CIA, particularly its experiments with LSD in the 1950's. Combining narrative scenes, archival footage, and interviews, Wormwood will tell the true story of Eric Olsen's journey to uncover the truth about the death of his father, Frank Rudolph Olson, a CIA employee who fell from a New York hotel room in 1953 after being secretly given LSD. Netflix has released the first teaser for the six-part series ahead of its debut at the upcoming Venice Film Festival, and the results certainly look intriguing.

Also starring Molly Parker, Christian Camargo, Scott Shepherd, Tim Blake Nelson, Jimmi Simpson, Bob Balaban, and Michael Chernus, Wormwood will explore "the limits of knowledge about the past and the lengths we’ll go in our search for the truth. A twisting, evolving story of one man’s sixty-year quest to identify the circumstances of his father’s mysterious death. Combining a virtuosic performance by Sarsgaard with Morris’ legendary interview style, Wormwood examines this case from every possible angle, bringing the viewer face-to-face with some of the United States’ darkest secrets." The release of the teaser was accompanied by a statement by Morris, who wrote:

Isn't journalism the pursuit of truth? But what if the truth proves to be elusive, hard to get at? How far does one go? Where does one stop? Are there limits, emotional and otherwise, to the pursuit of truth? Can it be injurious to one's health? Here we have the story of one man's 60-year quest to identify the circumstances of his father's death. Did he jump from a hotel window? Or was he pushed? And if he was pushed, why? What for? A shadowy world of hidden and imagined intentions coupled with dark and horrifying revelations. In many ways, a personal family story, but in many other ways, a story of America's decline in the period following World War II. It asks the question: To what extent can a democracy lie to its citizens and still, in the end, remain a democracy? 

Wormwood will debut on Netflix on December 15, 2017.