Leading the pack of the latest movie trend of bringing brand true stories to life is BlackBerry, the 2023 drama/comedy that all the critics are raving about. However, some may wonder about the subject of the movie, businessman Jim Balsillie, played by Glenn Howerton.
For instance, was Balsillie — who is depicted somewhat negatively in the film — involved in making the movie? And what is his net worth today?
In the film, Balsillie is depicted as an investor in the invention that would go on to become the world’s first smartphone who is arrogant, more preoccupied with buying an NHL team than running his business, and prone to violent and profanity-filled fits of rage.
However, it is evident by Balsillie’s responses in an interview with CTV that not only is the portrayal not accurate to who he is as a person, but seeing the end result of the movie came as a surprise to him. As he explained:
“When I first saw it, I was confused for about five minutes. And then I thought, ‘OK, we’re being roasted here. This is a satire.’ […] They’re taking an element of truth, who I am, and they’re playing with it. I’m aggressive. I’m competitive. I’m ambitious. I own that.”
Fact v fiction
The former Research In Motion co-CEO has also pointed out inaccuracies in the movie, such as the incorrect assertion that Balsillie was involved with stock fraud, although the company was fined millions by the Ontario Securities Commission for negligence regarding backdating.
Balsillie also denied his attempt to buy an NHL team was ever a hindrance to his business, considering he spent much more time participating in triathlons than having meetings about the hockey team bid. In addition, Balsillie said the filmmakers did not approach him regarding research for the finer details of his life, completely overlooking a missed opportunity to include a wooden frog with wings that sat in his office in the movie.
With that said, Balsillie was a willing participant in the BlackBerry film when it came to attending the Toronto International Film Festival red carpet premiere. RIM co-CEO Mike Lazaridis, played by Jay Baruchel in the movie, wasn’t as willing to participate as he did not attend the event.
All in all, Balsillie was a good sport about the entire ordeal, even though he is portrayed as an almost antagonistic figure in the film. In the end, he summarized his thoughts by saying BlackBerry was about 5 percent accurate and 95 percent “made up,” as he explained in an interview with CBC News.
What is Jim Balsillie’s net worth?
Since BlackBerry traces the meteoric rise and catastrophic fall of the company that renamed itself after its best-selling product, does that mean the story serves as a riches-to-rags tale for Balsillie? Well, not exactly.
Despite the company once boasting the widest-reaching smartphone in the world, which quickly became second-fiddle in 2007 with the iPhone’s introduction, Balsillie still has a net worth of some $800 million to this day, according to Celebrity Net Worth. While that sounds like a nose-bleedingly high amount of money for you or me, his net worth was reportedly $2.3 billion at the peak of BlackBerry’s powers before the company essentially crashed to the ground.
Though BlackBerry was released in theaters on May 12, 2023, there’s still a way to watch it if you missed it on the big screen. An extended version of the movie, broken up into a three-part miniseries, is slated for release on AMC and AMC Plus on Nov. 13, 2023.