Inventing Anna's Chase Is Fictional (But Could Be Based On A Real Ex)
If you were wondering if Netflix's "Inventing Anna" series is totally accurate, it begins with the disclaimer: "This whole story is completely true. Except for all the parts that are totally made up." While we know specifically which characters are based on real people, there are just as many that are made up — or composites of different people. The identity of Anna Sorokin-Anna Delvey's boyfriend, Chase Sikorski (Saamer Usmani), is one such character that has had fans scratching their heads.
Only referred to as the "Futurist" in Jessica Pressler's article in New York Magazine, fans began to come up with ideas of who the Futurist's identity was based on Pressler describing him as a regular on the TED Talk circuit and the subject of a past profile by The New Yorker. One suggestion was AOL marketing executive David Shing, who had been profiled by The New Yorker in 2014 and talked about the digital landscape in his TED Talk.
Another option floated by viewers was Hunter Lee Soik, who was the subject of a profile in The New Yorker and presented a TED Talk. Like Sikorski, he did actually invent an app to help create a community of dreamers, called Shadow. But more importantly, Page Six reported that they had sources who established that she used to date Soik, with one source saying the tech entrepreneur had introduced Sorokin to the New York social scene.
Clues may suggest Chase is based on Soik
Shortly after the Netflix series "Inventing Anna" was released, fans' interest in the person who Chase was based on had gotten so loud that Page Six reported that Sorokin posted on her Instagram stories, "Want to know who the real 'Chase' is? The media outlet with the highest bid gets the exclusive. Bid starts at 10K. DM to bid." While Sorokin has never confirmed whether Chase is based on Hunter Lee Soik, Sorokin's former best friend, Rachel DeLoache Williams, wrote in her book, "My Friend Anna," that Sorokin had dated Soik, who was often called a "futurist."
Soik is also mentioned in one of Sorokin's own Instagram posts from 2014, which shows a yacht on the ocean in Ibiza. Viewers will recall that in Episode 2 ("The Devil Wore Anna"), Anna and Chase spontaneously fly to Ibiza and stay on Henrick Knight's (Josh Malina) yacht after getting an invite from his friend and Anna's (Julie Garner) acquaintance, Talia Mallay (Marika Dominczyk), to try to get Knight to invest in Chase's app.
While the facts seem to suggest that Chase could be based on Soik, Sorokin has still never confirmed or denied it. Based on the fact that Soik is not even referred to by name in Pressler's article, audiences may never know for sure if there is a true connection between Chase and Soik.