The Social Network Trivia Quiz

Answer: Aaron Sorkin

Aaron Sorkin wrote the screenplay as an adaptation of the book "The Accidental Billionaires" by Ben Mezrich. Only Eduardo Saverin served as a consultant on the book, with no other principals being involved in it or in the making of the movie. Both Mark Zuckerberg and Sean Parker have called the film grossly inaccurate in the details. Sorkin makes a cameo in the movie as an advertising executive.

Sorkin got his start as a playwright, writing the play "A Few Good Men", which was adapted into a movie of the same name. He wrote two other screenplays - "Malice" and "The American President" - before turning to TV, with "The West Wing" being a big success in that medium.

Answer: David Fincher

David Fincher became known for these dark, stylized thrillers beginning in the 1990s. His stature grew with directorial Oscar nominations for "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" (2008) and "The Social Network" (2010). His pairing with writer Aaron Sorkin was thought by many to be an odd pairing but most critics agree that it worked, creating a highly praised movie.

The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards and won three, but Fincher did not win for directing.

Answer: Mark Zuckerberg

As an undergrad at Harvard, Zuckerberg developed Facebook and, with the financing of Eduardo Saverin, launched the site Feb. 4, 2004. Zuckerberg disagreed with the film's protrayal of his motivations for creating the site but did agree the movie got his wardrobe right. The film told the story of Facebook's founding in flashbacks during a series of depositions for the lawsuits that came about from its creation. Zuckerberg's supposed awkwardness with women was established in the opening sequence in which his then girlfriend breaks up with him.

Jesse Eisenberg played Mark Zuckerberg in the film. Eisenberg's first critical acclaim came for his work in 2005's "The Squid and the Whale" opposite Jeff Daniels and Laura Linney. His work in "The Social Network" led to numerous nominations as Best Actor, culminating in an Oscar nomination.

Answer: Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake played Sean Parker in the movie. He has acted off and on since 2000, appearing in such films as "Alpha Dog", "Black Snake Moan", "Southland Tales", and "Shrek the Third". His work in "The Social Network" earned much critical acclaim.

According to the movie, Parker had a taste for young girls, perhaps even underage ones, and for partying. These factors led to his downfall when he was caught with cocaine and young girls at a party. The bad publicity caused him to be dismissed as president of the fledgling company. He did still retain his stock but was out of the company's day to day operations. Although it is factually true that an arrest on suspicion of cocaine possession led to his ouster at Facebook, no charges were ever filed. In real life, Parker disputed his characterization as a playboy in the film.

Answer: Harvard

Zuckerberg was attending Harvard at the time he created Facebook. The intensely competitive environment, both socially and academically, and the party atmosphere used to cope with these pressures were used as the backdrop for the story. Sorkin used this environment as the motivation for the creation of Facebook, but Zuckerberg claimed Sorkin got it wrong. Getting girls was not his primary motivation as the movie implied, rather he built it because he could. Actress Natalie Portman, who was a student at Harvard and graduated a year prior to the launch of Facebook, was Aaron Sorkin's inside source as to what life was like at Harvard.

Answer: Larry Summers

Larry Summers was the Treasury Secretary under Bill Clinton and became the President of Harvard University after leaving that job. The movie painted a portrait of Summers as being dissmissive of both the Winklevoss twins and the idea of Facebook. He did not think Harvard had any role in the dispute and suggested the twins take the case to court.

Although Summers did not necessarily recall the meeting with the twins, he did not deny that his portrayal in the movie was accurate and not at all in conflict with how he would have reacted to the situation.

Answer: Rowing

The twins were champion rowers in the movie and finished sixth in the Beijing Olympics. Rowing was a very big sport at Harvard and the Harvard-Yale Regatta is an annual rowing competition that has been held since 1859, except during the world wars. It is the oldest collegiate athletic competition in the US.

In the movie, the twins were in London for the Henley Royal Regatta when they learned that Facebook had expanded beyond America. This was the final straw that made the twins and Divya Narendra decide to sue Facebook.

Answer: Eduardo Saverin

Saverin was Mark Zuckerberg's friend and initial backer. As other venture capital came into the company, Saverin was squeezed out, resulting in his own lawsuit against Zuckerberg. The terms of the settlement between Facebook and Saverin have not been disclosed but he did retain ownership of 5% of the company's stock. Saverin was the only one of the principal's involved who cooperated with Ben Mezrich as he wrote "The Accidental Billionaires".

Andrew Garfield played Eduardo Saverin. Garfield burst onto the scene in 2010 with the movies "Never Let Me Go" and "The Social Network". He has been tapped to take over the role of Spider-Man from Tobey Maguire in 2012.

Answer: A settlement for $65 million

According to the movie, the twins, along with Divya Narendra, settled for $65 million. The three antagonists had hired Zuckerberg to create a social website for them. Although he initially agreed to work with them, Zuckerberg stonewalled them while he created his own website, Facebook.

The movie never made clear why Zuckerberg did this or whether or not he stole anything from the three. Considering the worth of Facebook at over $15 billion dollars, it can be inferred that their case was weak. Subsequently, ConnectU's (the rival site created by the three) lawsuit was refiled in March 2008, seeking to change the terms of the settlement and adjust the terms to quadruple its initial valuation.

Answer: Sean Parker

In the movie, Sean Parker suggested that Zuckerberg drop the 'the' and make it just Facebook. Although Parker has had much criticism about his portrayal in the movie, the film made quite clear the role he had in helping Zuckerberg protect his interests as the creator of the site. Parker learned hard lessons from his own experience with Napster and from watching other entrepreneurs get taken advantage of. Parker negotiated deals in which Zuckerberg retained control of Facebook and always will.