A leaked “sex tape” of an NYC Council candidate in the run-up to election day sounds like a plotline from “Scandal,” yet there turned out to be an unexpected twist in this political drama. This particular “sex tape” leak was actually 100% fake and created to feature in an upcoming political satire set to make its NYC debut on October 22.
Let’s go back to the beginning. Zack Weiner was the 2021 New York City Council candidate whose leaked “sex tape” with a dominatrix became a viral media sensation. He ran in the Sixth District on the Upper West Side against current City Councilmember Gale Brewer, who defeated him in a landslide victory.
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Initially, the video, which showed Weiner in a BDSM scene, seemed like a scandalous political revelation. It earned commentary from TV show hosts like Stephen Colbert and Seth Meyers, and caused a stir on social media. For all intents and purposes, it appeared to be a genuine leak of a deeply private video, with Weiner issuing a Twitter statement to defend the video and his actions.
— ELECTWEINER (@ELECTWEINER) June 19, 2021
However, it later turned out that the entire “sex tape” saga was deliberately made to feature in a mockumentary called “Citizen Weiner,” a comedy-satire Weiner was writing and filming about his run for City Council. Far from an unintended violation of privacy, Weiner and his crew engineered the controversial BDSM scene and tape leak to emphasize the absurdity of political scandals, and to highlight how easily politics can be sensationalized.
The documentary’s IMDb page gives this short description of the film: “When the film industry shuts down in 2020, Zack and his friend Joe embark on a unique project: to make a film about running for city council, while actually running for city council.”
The premiere will be held at the Angelika Film Center in the East Village on Tuesday, October 22. It will also be making its Upper West Side premiere at the JCC.
Learn more about the movie here.
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Zack who? There was a sex tape scandal in the last Council race? Ok whatever.
This guy is just a troll, an election troll. He baits people to see how they will react. He needs to go away and not come back. Our elections aren’t performance art for your movie project.
Not performance art? I don’t believe that memo has gone out.
I love this so much I can hardly stand it. Bravo… marketing genius.
Yes I’m sure the box office will be YUGE…..