Aaron Sorkin has revealed the reason why Jesse Eisenberg declined to reprise his role as Mark Zuckerberg in The Social Reckoning.
During a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Sorkin – who wrote 2010’s Oscar-winning The Social Network, as well as penning and directing its upcoming sequel – said that he spent three days trying to convince Eisenberg to return for the follow-up.
The first film charted the early days of the social media giant, in the process earning Eisenberg critical acclaim, as well as Best Actor nominations at the Oscars, Golden Globes, and BAFTAs for his performance as the future Meta chairman.
Sorkin said the role “felt like it belonged to him, and he was certainly battle-tested.”
However, he couldn’t be persuaded. “He simply did not want to be conflated with Mark Zuckerberg anymore, that he has his problems with the guy,” Sorkin explained. “He doesn’t like kids coming up to him in airports with business cards that say ‘I’m CEO, bitch’ for him to sign.”
Last year, Eisenberg distanced himself from Zuckerberg over the tech giant’s recent actions, saying at the time: “I’m a human being and you read these things and these people have billions upon billions of dollars, more money than any human person has ever amassed.
“And what are they doing with it? Oh, they’re doing it to curry favour with somebody who’s preaching hateful things.”
On Friday (June 11), the first trailer for The Social Reckoning arrived, with fans so far heaping praise on Jeremy Strong’s transformation into Zuckerberg. The film is set for release on October 9, is directed by Sorkin, taking over from the previous director David Fincher.
The story is described as a “spiritual successor” to the previous film, and follows the 2021 Facebook Files investigation, where whistleblower Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison) and Wall Street Journal journalist Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White) expose Meta’s harmful internal practices.
It’s also said that the January 6, 2021 riots, where supporters of Donald Trump attacked the United States Capitol, will also factor into the storytelling, something that Sorkin has discussed in the past.
The trailer has already drawn received a variety of reactions on X, with many taken aback by Strong’s ability to step into Zuckerberg’s shoes.
“Must a movie have a ‘good script’ or ‘coherent storyline’ when it has Jeremy Strong in a transformational supporting role dogwalking everyone?” wrote one user, while another added: “Jeremy Strong looks like he became Zuck man, this is insane”.
Succession actor Strong is well known for his practice of Method acting, in which he immerses himself in the character that he is playing. The approach has been criticised by former co-star Brian Cox, who described it as “fucking annoying” in 2023.
In April, Cox revealed Strong pleaded with him to stop talking about his method acting in interviews.