Aaron Sorkin and Todd Black discuss ‘The Social Reckoning’ at Virginia Film Festival – The Cavalier Daily

The Virginia Film Festival is back for its 39th year with over 100 films across five days. Alongside these films, VAFF offers special events that usher in some of Hollywood’s finest talents. Thursday evening, VAFF screened “The Social Reckoning,” the highly anticipated follow-up to David Fincher’s “The Social Network.” The screening was followed by one of the festival’s most coveted events, a discussion with director and writer Aaron Sorkin and producer Todd Black.

Known for his sharp dialogue and unforgettable courtroom dramas, Sorkin is one of Hollywood’s most celebrated screenwriters.  Sorkin was responsible for the screenplay of “A Few Good Men,” “The West Wing” and “The Social Network” before making his directorial debut in 2017 with “Molly’s Game.” His work has cemented his legacy within film history as a legendary writer, producer and director, garnering buzz among Charlottesville film lovers regarding his presence at the 2026 Virginia Film Festival.

Before the screening, Julie Lynn, VAFF Advisory Board member and producer, presented Todd Black with the festival’s inaugural Career Producer Honor, displaying a montage of the films he has worked on such as “The Pursuit of Happyness” and “Being the Ricardos.”  

Moderated by Fortune journalist Ellie Austin, the discussion began just after the film with Austin’s inquiry about the incident that first gave rise to “The Social Reckoning.” Sorkin noted that despite constant headlines surrounding Facebook’s ethical controversies, he never actively sought out writing a sequel to “The Social Network.” Instead, his communication with the film’s central figures, journalist Jeff Horwitz and former Facebook employee and whistleblower Frances Haugen, inspired the 2026 film. 

When Sorkin asked Haugen about the motivating factor behind her decision to expose Facebook’s internal documents in 2021, she relayed a personal anecdote that would later serve as the film’s opening scene. 

“That’s when she casually told me about a friend of hers who had become radicalized by spending too much time on Facebook … and I imagined the prologue to the first scene that’s in the movie,” Sorkin said. “At that point, it’s not like the whole movie came to me, but I really liked this opening scene, and the only way that you can get people to see that opening scene is if you also write the 100 scenes that come after it.” 

Though attendees may have believed that the experienced genius of Sorkin and Black could bypass all trouble on a film set, the pair said that they faced legal concerns throughout production. “The Social Reckoning” depicted real events involving notable public figures such as Mark Zuckerberg, creating the need for a full and accurate portrayal of the “Facebook Files.”

“Certainly on any nonfiction movie, there’s going to be a thorough legal vet of what you’re doing, because unlike Facebook, unlike Meta, a movie studio can get sued for what they put up on the screen,” Black said.

Moreover, Sorkin acknowledged the intricate balance between journalistic integrity and storytelling value concerning the depiction of public figures. He recalled a moment on the set of “The Social Network” where director Fincher and Sorkin were working on the scene in which Jesse Eisenberg’s Mark Zuckerberg created the website that would later become Facebook. In actuality, Zuckerberg was drinking a beer, which Fincher wanted to portray in the film. Yet, Sorkin said he wanted to emphasize Zuckerberg’s intent to become greatly intoxicated on that fateful night, as lowered inhibitions were arguably an important factor in the development of Facebook. Sorkin eventually convinced Fincher to have Eisenberg’s character use a mixed vodka drink, emphasizing the necessary sacrifice of journalistic integrity for the merits of filmmaking. 

“I think of it this way — that there’s an important difference between what I do, what we do and journalism,” Sorkin said. “What journalism [does] is a photograph, and what we do is a painting.” 

When asked where the line is drawn regarding depicting real-life characters through dialogue, Sorkin delivered a cheeky yet accurate answer, reflecting the wittiness that translates into his on-screen dialogue.

“Where do I draw the line? I kind of know the line when I see it,” Sorkin said.

Towards the end of the discussion, Sorkin was asked about the film’s optimistic ending, which offered a message of hope even as controversies regarding facebook and online platform conduct continue. Sorkin said this positivity mirrored his overall writing style. 

“I wanted the audience to feel good at the end of the movie … I like it when an audience can leave a theater just feeling two inches taller than they were when they walked in,” Sorkin said. “I tend to write romantically and idealistically, and I like to write about heroes who don’t have supernatural powers, heroes who don’t wear capes.”

The discussion concluded with Black’s assertion of his eagerness to work with Sorkin in the future, despite having no specific projects in the works. While the filmmaking process was filled with legal considerations and conscientious creative decisions, Sorkin and Black said they were confident in their film’s messages and relevance in today’s society. Attendee and Darden student Ethan Guinn noted his enjoyment of the unique ability to hear about “The Social Reckoning” directly from the source — Sorkin and Black. 

“I thought it was so fascinating hearing how they perceived the movie and the things that they took away — the challenges that they faced making it,” Guinn said. “It just makes me appreciate the movie that they made, the finished product even more.”

While it is not every day that a college town hosts two of Hollywood’s sharpest talents, the Virginia Film Festival has shown it has the gravitas necessary to draw them in. Sorkin and Black taught Charlottesville the importance of creative liberty in storytelling, and that perhaps the story will come to the director when it needs to be told the most.