Abhiroop Das
Helmed by Romain Gavras for Netflix, Sacrifice is a thriller film that begins with a lavish charity gala hosted by billionaire Ben Bracken, whose deep-sea mining venture, Poseidon Alliance, is the talk of the town for all sorts of reasons. However, the night takes a turn when armed activists take over the event, announcing instead that they wish to take three people as sacrifices for a mysterious ritual. What unfolds is a battle between narratives, where Ben claims that technology alone can save the world, all the while covering up the disastrous effects of his actions on Earth’s environments. Through his character, the story makes way for a much larger commentary on humanity’s relationship with nature as a whole.
Ben Bracken is a Composite of Several Real-Life Billionaires
Ben Bracken is a fictional billionaire created specifically for the world of ‘Sacrifice’ by writers Romain Gavras and Will Arbery. Gavras was asked rather directly during a Hollywood Reporter interview if Ben is based on a real-life figure, to which he said that Ben is a “compilation of many billionaires,” though he didn’t provide any names. When asked further if he drew any particular details from any particular person, Gavras confirmed that while certain details of the character may have specific antecedents, as a whole, Ben isn’t meant to be an impersonation of anyone.
Given that the entire story is a satire of contemporary anxieties, it makes sense for Ben to be depicted as an exaggerated figure who embodies the contradictions surrounding wealth, celebrity, environmentalism, and tech optimism. For actor Vincent Cassel, who essays the role, these contradictions also made Ben a more sympathetic presence, as he is someone who loves his family and fully believes in the work he’s doing, even when that work is merely pushing the world into darker corners. That said, all of these details originate from the mind of the creative team, and aren’t meant to call back to any real-life billionaires.
Poseidon Alliance is an Invented Company Charged With Social Commentary
Much like Ben Bracken is an invented presence, his in-universe company, Poseidon Alliance, is also fictional in nature. While deep-sea mineral mining has been a sizeable industry for more than seven decades, Ben Bracken claims to have pioneered an innovative way to perform it sustainably. However, the framing of Poseidon Alliance as an environmentally friendly endeavor is the subject of much satire in the film, and draws from Romain Gavras and Will Arbery’s social commentary. Gavras in particular noted that the film is commenting on people attempting to change the world “for virtue signaling, for profound, radical, illuminated reasons, and some for personal gain,” which is where the mining company fits in.
While it makes sense for the writing team to not name any one real-life deep-sea mining company as the inspiration for the story, a lot of research likely went into the making of Poseidon Alliance. What gives the company its unique narrative role, however, is how it’s criticized for its harmful impacts on the environment. Deep-sea mining involves extracting deposits such as polymetallic nodules, seafloor sulfides, and cobalt-rich crusts containing minerals including nickel, cobalt, manganese, and copper. The U.S. Government Accountability Office notes that mining can destroy seabed habitat and generate sediment plumes that may contain toxic heavy metals and spread through ocean currents, while noise and artificial light from mining equipment could also affect marine life. All of these lies at the heart of the movie’s stance on how technological innovation should not be abused for the sake of selfish gains at the cost of the planet.
Read More: Sacrifice Ending Explained: Why Does Mike Jump? Does He Save the World?
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