18 wild details from 'The Dropout,' Hulu's miniseries on Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos — and whether they really happened or not

Sarah Jackson,Patrick SproullApr 9, 2022, 20:06 IST

Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes (left) and the real Elizabeth Holmes (right).Beth Dubber/Hulu; Karl Mondon/MediaNews Group/Bay Area News via Getty Images

"The Dropout" chronicles the rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes and blood-testing company Theranos.
The Hulu miniseries shows Theranos' deceptions to outsiders, Holmes' relationship with COO Ramesh Balwani, and more.

Elizabeth Holmes' fraud trial ended with a conviction months ago, but the meteoric rise and fall of the Theranos CEO is still capturing plenty of attention elsewhere.

Amanda Seyfried in "The Dropout" (left); Elizabeth Holmes (right).Beth Dubber/Hulu; Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch

Holmes and Balwani did meet on a summer trip to Beijing through a Mandarin immersion program run by Stanford University.

Amanda Seyfried and Naveen Andrews in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

It's also true that Holmes didn't always envision Theranos would make blood-testing machines.

Amanda Seyfried in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

In the show, Holmes has a close call with a stray bullet shortly after moving into the new office in east Palo Alto, and the scare prompts her to contact Balwani despite previously saying she wanted no further contact with him.

Amanda Seyfried and Naveen Andrews in "The Dropout."Hulu

In the show, Holmes has a close call with a stray bullet shortly after moving into the new office in east Palo Alto, and the scare prompts her to contact Balwani despite previously saying she wanted no further contact with him.

And yes, Theranos really did fake its demo for pharmaceutical giant Novartis in Switzerland in 2006.

Amanda Seyfried in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

Holmes and Balwani did keep their romantic relationship a secret from Theranos board members, investors, and press for many years.

Amanda Seyfried and Naveen Andrews in "The Dropout."Michael Desmond/Hulu

The show also zeroes in on one aspect of the Theranos saga that has captured a lot of public attention: Holmes' baritone.

Amanda Seyfried in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

True to life, the Theranos board came very close to replacing Holmes as CEO at one point.

The Board confronts Elizabeth Holmes (Amanda Seyfried).Hulu

In the series, Walgreens executives ask a man named Kevin Hunter to scope out Theranos' lab to make sure things are up to par before they sign any deal with the company. In one scene, Hunter examines some of Theranos' literature, reading, "Theranos has been thoroughly validated over the last seven years by a majority of the largest pharmaceutical companies." This is a bit of both reality and fiction.

Rich Sommer in "The Dropout."Hulu

In the series, Walgreens executives ask a man named Kevin Hunter to scope out Theranos' lab to make sure things are up to par before they sign any deal with the company. In one scene, Hunter examines some of Theranos' literature, reading, "Theranos has been thoroughly validated over the last seven years by a majority of the largest pharmaceutical companies." This is a bit of both reality and fiction.

Theranos did, in fact, use modified third-party machines from companies like Siemens instead of the proprietary Edison machine.

Theranos whistleblowers Erika Cheung (played by Camryn Mi-young Kim and pictured at left) and Tyler Shultz (played by Dylan Minnette and pictured second from left) were instrumental in bringing Theranos' lab issues to light.Michael Desmond/Hulu

Holmes' reaction to Ian Gibbons' death really was that cruel.

Stephen Fry plays Dr. Ian Gibbons in Hulu's "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu; Ian Gibbons

Holmes' terrifying birthday party actually took place in real life.

Sam Waterston in "The Dropout."Michael Desmond/Hulu

The legal side of "The Dropout" is more fictionalized.

Michaela Watkins and Dylan Minnette in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

Elizabeth Holmes really did meet Bill Clinton and Joe Biden.

Elizabeth Holmes and Joe Biden.Diana Mulvill for Theranos

It's not clear if Phyllis Gardner and Elizabeth Holmes ever reunited after Holmes' time at Stanford.

Laurie Metcalf and Amanda Seyfried in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

Tyler Shultz's relationship with his grandfather was permanently affected by the Theranos scandal.

Dylan Minnette as Tyler Shultz in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

Holmes said "I don't know" over 600 times in her deposition.

Amanda Seyfried in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

The breakdown of Balwani and Holmes' relationship wasn't made public.

Amanda Seyfried as Elizabeth Holmes and Naveen Andrews as Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani in "The Dropout."Beth Dubber/Hulu

Holmes actually bought a Siberian husky as Theranos collapsed.

Not Holmes' actual dog.Kateryna Orlova/Shutterstock

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18 wild details from 'The Dropout,' Hulu's miniseries on Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos &mdash; and whether they really happened or not

Elizabeth Holmes' fraud trial ended with a conviction months ago, but the meteoric rise and fall of the Theranos CEO is still capturing plenty of attention elsewhere.

Holmes and Balwani did meet on a summer trip to Beijing through a Mandarin immersion program run by Stanford University.

It's also true that Holmes didn't always envision Theranos would make blood-testing machines.

In the show, Holmes has a close call with a stray bullet shortly after moving into the new office in east Palo Alto, and the scare prompts her to contact Balwani despite previously saying she wanted no further contact with him.

And yes, Theranos really did fake its demo for pharmaceutical giant Novartis in Switzerland in 2006.

Holmes and Balwani did keep their romantic relationship a secret from Theranos board members, investors, and press for many years.

The show also zeroes in on one aspect of the Theranos saga that has captured a lot of public attention: Holmes' baritone.

True to life, the Theranos board came very close to replacing Holmes as CEO at one point.

Theranos did, in fact, use modified third-party machines from companies like Siemens instead of the proprietary Edison machine.

Holmes' reaction to Ian Gibbons' death really was that cruel.

Holmes' terrifying birthday party actually took place in real life.

The legal side of "The Dropout" is more fictionalized.

Elizabeth Holmes really did meet Bill Clinton and Joe Biden.

It's not clear if Phyllis Gardner and Elizabeth Holmes ever reunited after Holmes' time at Stanford.

Tyler Shultz's relationship with his grandfather was permanently affected by the Theranos scandal.

Holmes said "I don't know" over 600 times in her deposition.

The breakdown of Balwani and Holmes' relationship wasn't made public.

Holmes actually bought a Siberian husky as Theranos collapsed.

18 wild details from 'The Dropout,' Hulu's miniseries on Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos — and whether they really happened or not