Watch Out of the Shadows: The Man Behind the Steele Dossier

Out of the Shadows: The Man Behind the Steele Dossier is a 2021 documentary on Hulu that explores the mysterious origins of the Steele Dossier, a controversial political document that has been at the center of several high-profile scandals in recent years. The film is directed by Barry Meier, an investigative journalist who has spent much of his career delving into the secretive world of intelligence agencies and political intrigue.

The Steele Dossier is a collection of reports compiled by former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, detailing alleged connections between the 2016 Trump presidential campaign and the Russian government. The document first came to public attention in January 2017, when it was published by BuzzFeed News. It has been the subject of intense scrutiny ever since, with some accusing it of being a fabricated smear campaign, while others believe it to be a credible intelligence assessment.

Out of the Shadows seeks to shed new light on this controversial document, and on the man behind it. The film includes extensive interviews with Christopher Steele himself, who has largely remained out of the public eye since the release of the dossier. It also features interviews with several other key players in the story, including politicians, intelligence operatives, and journalists.

The film is divided into several chapters, each of which explores a different aspect of the dossier and its origins. The first chapter provides some background on Christopher Steele, detailing his career as a spy for the British intelligence agency MI6, and his eventual decision to go into private intelligence consulting. It also touches on his personal motivations for compiling the dossier, which he claims were driven by a desire to protect the United States from Russian interference.

Another chapter delves into the details of the dossier itself, outlining the most salacious allegations it contains, such as claims of a secret Trump-Russia sex tape, as well as more substantive allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government. The film also explores how the dossier was received by various players in the intelligence community, and how it became a key piece of evidence in the FBI investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Out of the Shadows is the way it uncovers new details about how the dossier was compiled and disseminated. The film provides evidence that Steele was not working alone, but was part of a network of intelligence operatives and political operatives who were working behind the scenes to get the dossier into the hands of the media and the FBI. It also suggests that the dossier was part of a larger effort to undermine the Trump campaign, and that some of the allegations contained in it may have been intentionally false or exaggerated.

Throughout the film, Meier and his team use a mixture of interviews, archival footage, and reenactments to bring the story to life. The result is a compelling and thought-provoking documentary that will likely be of interest to anyone who follows American politics, intelligence operations, or the intersection between the two. Whether you believe the dossier to be a legitimate intelligence assessment or a partisan smear campaign, Out of the Shadows offers a fascinating look at the shadowy world of intelligence gathering, and the people who inhabit it.

Out of the Shadows: The Man Behind the Steele Dossier is a series that is currently running and has 1 seasons (1 episodes). The series first aired on November 3, 2021.