Summary

• The Dropout on Hulu vividly portrays Elizabeth Holmes' betrayal of Ian Gibbons, highlighting the tragic repercussions of her deception.
• Ian Gibbons, a respected biochemist, believed in Theranos' potential, but Holmes' lies ultimately led to his untimely death in 2013.
• Despite legal repercussions, Ian Gibbons' wife, Rochelle, finds closure in Elizabeth Holmes' conviction, bringing some justice for her late husband.

Hulu's limited series The Dropout tells the true story of the fraudulent Silicon Valley biotech entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes and the harmful repercussions of her lies, which include the death of Theranos chief scientist Ian Gibbons. Played by The Hobbit's Stephen Fry in The Dropout, Ian Gibbons was a well-respected, accomplished, and Cambridge-educated British biochemist. He became one of the first people hired by the young and hugely ambitious Stanford dropout Elizabeth Holmes (Amanda Seyfried) in 2005 and continued to work for Holmes until his untimely death in 2013.

Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes gained fame from her inspiring story of entrepreneurial success, especially since her company pushed a technology that promised to revolutionize blood testing. The show was particularly effective at presenting Holmes as someone who was able to inspire and convince brilliant and successful people like Ian Gibbons to join her team only for her to betray them in her attempts to cover up the truth. In the end, The Dropout shows the damage done to Holmes' reputation, but more importantly, to the people who put their trust in her — especially the late Ian Gibbons.

The Dropout is available to stream on Hulu.

What Happened To Ian Gibbons

His Time At Theranos Caused Ian Gibbons To Try And Take His Own Life

As portrayed in The Dropout, Ian Gibbons was a well-liked friend and colleague, apparently known for his kindness, honesty, and geniality. At first, he truly believed that Holmes' company, Theranos, could fulfill its promises of changing the world and revolutionizing the healthcare industry by making it more affordable and accessible. Though he worked diligently for years to make Holmes' vision (a potentially life-saving diagnostic machine that would only require a pinprick of blood) into a reality, it eventually became clear to Ian Gibbons that Theranos' tech was not working — and that Holmes was selling it anyway.

In spite of Ian Gibbons's concerns, Elizabeth Holmes was barreling ahead with trials, investors, and funding for Theranos' blood-testing Edison machine. She willfully ignored the fact that they were unable to make the product work, determined to emulate the success of her idol, Steve Jobs. As a leading scientist at the company, Ian Gibbons was deeply disturbed by the lies Holmes was peddling to investors and the public.

Using medication mixed with alcohol, Ian Gibbons attempted suicide on May 16, 2013

He was especially alarmed when he learned that Holmes was gearing up to implement the device at "Wellness Centers" in a new partnership with Walgreens, knowing that results would be inaccurate, if not completely fabricated, using rival technology. Ian Gibbons voiced his concerns to Holmes, but they went unheeded. He was even briefly fired, as shown in The Dropout, only to be brought back a few hours later to keep him from divulging the company's sensitive information like whistleblower Tyler Schultz.

Between pressure from Holmes and a subpoena from Richard Fuisz (Shameless' William H. Macy) that would require him to testify or risk violating his Theranos NDA, Gibbons was thoroughly distraught. Using medication mixed with alcohol, Ian Gibbons attempted suicide on May 16, 2013, dying a week later in the hospital due to liver failure.

Ian Gibbons' Wife Still Blames Theranos For His Death

Rochelle Gibbons Found Little Solace In Elizabeth Holmes' Conviction

Ian Gibbons' wife, Rochelle, still blames Theranos for his death, having seen the way that the stress of lying and misinformation ate away at her husband for years. When Rochelle called to inform Holmes of Gibbons' passing, she reached an assistant who promised to inform Elizabeth Holmes; however, the only response Rochelle got from Holmes was a phone call from a Theranos employee demanding that she return any of the company's property left by her husband (via Vanity Fair).

When Rochelle, played by Grey's Anatomy's Kate Burton in The Dropout, spoke to a reporter shortly after Gibbons' death, the bereaved widow was promptly threatened by Theranos with legal action. In the years since, Rochelle has remained courageously vocal about Theranos and Holmes' duplicity.

Holmes' ruthless and unethical actions had drastic consequences, which in Ian Gibbons' case were tragically fatal.

Holmes' scam was eventually discovered, and she was convicted of four counts of defrauding investors. However, this provides little comfort or restitution for Rochelle Gibbons and the memory of her late husband, Ian. After the conviction, Rochelle told reporters:

"I am still a widow. Ian is still dead. I don't know how that's justice, but I don't know how you get justice for that." (via The Daily Mail).

As illustrated in The Dropout, Holmes' ruthless and unethical actions had drastic consequences, which in Ian Gibbons' case were tragically fatal.

What The Show Changed From Ian Gibbons' Real Death

The Dropout Handled The Death Of Ian Gibbons Remarkably Well

The Dropout is based on a true story, but it embellishes many events and details to add to the drama. It handled Ian Gibbons' death with remarkable accuracy, though, and his tragic end was both treated with respect and left more or less unaltered from the real-life case. Ian Gibbons really did attempt to take his own life the night before he was due to testify, and it was Tylenol (acetaminophen) he overdosed on. He also died in hospital days later of liver failure, as depicted by the show. The key differences are in the reaction of Theranos.

The show accurately portrayed the hell Elizabeth Holmes' actions put Ian Gibbons through with her lies and deceit

In the show, there's a conciliatory email sent around by a colleague to commemorate Ian's achievements and acknowledge his contributions. According to Gibbons' wife Rochelle, this was invented for The Dropout characters, and no such email existed in real life. What's more, Rochelle claims she received letters from Theranos after Ian's passing threatening legal action should she speak out. The show accurately portrayed the hell Elizabeth Holmes' actions put Ian Gibbons through with her lies and deceit, and The Dropout manages to capture the most important fact about Ian Gibbon's passing — it was a tragedy that should never have happened.

Ian Gibbons' Wife Found Some Closure

While Nothing Could Bring Back Her Husband, Rochelle Gibbons Was Happy Holmes Was Exposed

The tragic death of Ian Gibbons cannot be undone, and The Dropout shows just how avoidable it all could have been, as well as the pain his death brought to his wife. However, since The Dropout ended, there have been some real-life developments in Elizabeth Holmes' story. In November 2022, Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in prison for her crimes of frauding investors.

The news came as complete relief and joy for Rochelle Gibbons (via Daily Mail). Though she acknowledges that any punishment given to Holmes will not bring back her husband, she is happy to see Holmes pay for her actions with this decision. With the pain of Ian Gibbons' death, the comfort this sentence delivers is much deserved.