He Orchestrated Hollywood’s Biggest Ponzi Scheme, Defrauding Investors Out Of Millions Of Dollars By Convincing Them That He Ran A Successful Movie Licensing Business
In one of Hollywood’s biggest financial scandals, a B-movie actor named Zachary Horwitz orchestrated a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of millions of dollars.
He did so by convincing them that he ran a successful movie licensing business. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022.
Known professionally as Zach Avery, Horwitz played parts in films starring actors like Bryan Cox, Olivia Munn, and Bruce Dern.
Over a span of five years, from 2014 to 2019, he raised approximately $690 million from friends, family members, and other investors.
He claimed that his company had secured licensing deals with major platforms like Netflix, HBO, and Sony for the rights to Spanish-language films, which would lead to substantial returns for those who invested.
During the five-year scheme, he scammed three of his closest friends from college, who persuaded their own family members to invest their money.
Horwitz used new funds to pay supposed returns on earlier investments in classic Ponzi scheme fashion. He kept up the act by sending fake licensing agreements and forged emails from executives of the corporations he claimed to be working with.
He even hired a woman to pretend to be an HBO executive who would speak to his investors on the phone and answer any questions they had about their investments.
However, the deals with large streaming services were all made up, and he used the money from investors to fund a lavish lifestyle. He purchased a $6 million home near Beverly Hills, where he lived with his wife and child.
pla2na – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
He also used the money to pay for flights on private jets and yacht trips. He spent $605,000 on luxury cars, $174,000 on event planners, and $54,600 on a luxury watch subscription service.
In addition, Horwitz was also beginning to see more success as an actor. In 2020, he played a supporting role alongside Bryan Cox in the film Last Moment of Clarity. The following year, he co-starred in The Gateway.
The scheme started unraveling in 2020 when Horwitz failed to make payments to investors. He had finally run out of funds to keep the fraud going.
When earlier investors demanded that he return their money, Horwitz would drag his feet, causing them to threaten lawsuits.
After launching an investigation, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged him with securities fraud, and he was arrested by the FBI.
He pled guilty to securities fraud in 2021 and received a 20-year prison sentence the next year. His wife filed for divorce after he was arrested.
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