‘#SKYKING’ director hopes doc about man who stole a plane inspires people to check on their friends

The documentary #SKYKING, now streaming on Hulu, tells the story of Richard “Beebo” Russell, who in 2018 stole a $33 million airplane — despite the fact that he’d never flown a plane — with tragic consequences. Director Patricia E. Gillespie tells ABC Audio why his family decided now was the time to tell his story.

“The family had initially been really media-averse, and part of that I think was because of just the pain of what had happened, but also the spin that got put on this story, the sensationalism,” Gillespie explained. The family agreed to the film after Gillespie corresponded with Beebo’s mother for nearly two years.

As for why Gillespie wanted to be the one to tell it, when she heard the cockpit recordings of Beebo’s flight on social media, she felt a kinship with him because of their similar backgrounds.

“He was expressing something that I think that a lot of people who come from where I come from feel,” she notes. “And that’s the impossibility of succeeding in the current American economic landscape and the difficulty of addressing the issue of mental health, particularly if you’re from the working class.”

“It just felt really urgent to me to bring that conversation to the fore,” she adds.

Gillespie structured the film around footage of Beebo’s family and friends listening to the entirety of the cockpit recordings for the first time, which she says was very brave of them.

“We knew it was really important to us to show the impact of the decision Bebo made, and that seemed like the most immediate way to do it,” she says.

While telling a “more complete and true story” about Beebo, Gillespie ultimately hopes the doc helps people.

“If I had a goal for this film or a wish for this film, it would be that after people watch it, they feel inspired to call their friend and ask if they’re OK.” 

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and Hulu.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.