John Altschuler Critiques Silicon Valley While Launching New Project at Iberseries & Platino Industria

During a compelling keynote address at the Iberseries & Platino Industria event held in Madrid, John Altschuler, the showrunner for the acclaimed HBO Max series “Silicon Valley,” shared his unfiltered views on the tech entrepreneurs who populate the real Silicon Valley. “They’re greedy, ravenous, terrible people,” he asserted, highlighting his disdain for the industry’s prevailing mindset.

The conceptual spark for “Silicon Valley” ignited from Altschuler’s reading of Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs. He recounted, “It’s a good book… I came to a passage about Bill Gates ridiculing Steve Jobs, saying: ‘The guy can’t even write code.’ And I thought, well, this is hilarious.”

In preparation for the series, he embarked on research trips to Silicon Valley, where he engaged with three different tech companies. All echoed a similar sentiment: “We’re not interested in making money; we’re interested in making the world a better place.” This ironic phrase is often echoed throughout Season 1 of “Silicon Valley,” a testament to the show’s satirical essence. Altschuler, known for his work on “King of the Hill,” recognized the absurdity of such statements.

Altschuler’s European visit was not solely dedicated to the keynote speech; he also sought partnerships for an Irish-U.K. co-production based on a book he co-authored with his “Silicon Valley” co-creator, Dave Krinsky, alongside author and narrator Richie Stephens. The project is titled, “The Gangster’s Guide to Sobriety: My Life in 12 Steps.”

Rejecting the idea of taking the project to a Hollywood studio, Altschuler remarked, “I believe there are underlying strengths to the Hollywood system that you do not have here. However, there is a respect for art and culture in Europe that we, in America, often lack. By combining these two worlds, we can produce something truly unique and surprising, which is essential for thriving in today’s marketplace.”

However, he expressed concern over the perception of writers in Europe. Sharing a personal anecdote, he revealed his attempts to meet with the creator of “Call My Agent,” Fanny Herrero. He was met with confusion when local professionals suggested he should meet the director instead. Altschuler firmly stated, “No. Directors come and go, but the vision of that show was hers, and that’s what I was interested in.”

Altschuler remarked on a troubling trend where writers from Europe feel compelled to migrate to America to achieve success. “It’s a shame because they end up writing for an American audience. My hope is to empower European writers to find success on their own turf and then share that success with American audiences,” he stated passionately.

Emphasizing the significance of the creative process, he lamented, “There is something fundamentally wrong with a system that devalues any part of the creative process. In fact, our production designer for “Silicon Valley” received our first Emmy, and I can assure you, they comprehended our show even better than I did, shaping the office space that brought our narrative to life.”

Addressing the current landscape in Hollywood, Gersh Agency partner Roy Ashton referred to a recent Writers Guild report showcasing a 40% decline in writer jobs since the strike in Hollywood. To which Altschuler replied, “The strike didn’t cause streamers to cut their episodes from 22 to 8.”

He concluded with a realistic perspective on the industry, stating, “It’s always been challenging—perhaps easier when I started—but it was always a game of chance. You work hard, you give it your all, and there are as many pathways to succeed now as ever. While the landscape is changing, it also presents new opportunities.”