Spitzer Documentary Director: “Ashley Dupré Didn't Matter That Much”

Director Alex Gibney made it clear Monday evening at a screening of his documentary about the Elliot Spitzer sex scandal, "Client 9," at the IFC Center: Ashley Dupré, the callgirl at the center of the scandal, did not have a major part in his film.

“Everybody thought that Ashley Dupré was the key person," Gibney said. "She’s got big breasts. She likes to have her picture taken. It’s all good… Turns out she was a bit player.”

The Oscar-winning documentary director said that Duprey didn't cooperate much, so he had to dig deeper.

“It left a hole in the film,” he said.

To fill that hole, Gibney tracked down other sources -- such as a former Emperor's Club escort named Angelina -- through social media sites like Facebook.

"We had friends in common," he joked. "Angelina was much more at the center (of the story), in a way that was both relevant to Spitzer’s character, but also to evidence about the way that the investigation that took him out was conducted.

"[Angelina] turned out to be a very central character, but one that I think Eliot probably would have preferred we hadn’t discovered”

Angelina is now a commodities trainer. To maintain her anonymity, Angelina was portrayed by actress Wrenn Schmidt in the film. 

“Angelina was very proud of what she did," Gibney said. "She felt it was a calling. She was very unapologetic about it. She liked the film a lot and thought Wrenn did a good job.”

Gibney answered questions as part of IFC’s Stranger Than Fiction series, which continues showcasing documentaries partnered with filmmaker Q&A’s weekly throughout the winter season.

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