Tribeca: “Spin Wars” is Spinning Out
In the mid-2010s, spin classes were all the rage. There’s a direct line from the heyday of group aerobics classes of the ’80s to the era of SoulCycle, FlyWheel, and Peloton. Jane Fonda couldn’t have known that she and her fellow spandex-clad instructors would pave the way for the cult-like attitude that pervaded these exclusive spin classes. Director Philip Byron’s documentary, Spin Wars, had its world premiere at the 2026 Tribeca Film Festival. Spin Wars is a reckoning of how the world of wellness can create a culture of abuse, racism, and exclusivity in the name of fitness.
Spinning, while now a catch-all for any class with a stationary bike, was the beginning of the spin craze. Initially developed by Jonathan Goldberg, an endurance bicycle racer, Spinning was the first-of-its-kind indoor cycling class. Even though Goldberg was the pioneer of this type of the class, Ruth Zukerman and her instruction at the Reebok club would lay the groundwork for what would become SoulCycle. Two of her riders, Elizabeth Cutler and Julie Rice, approached her about opening a boutique spin studio. The three of them would enter into a verbal agreement about the business, but as the money started flowing in, Ruth found herself on the outside.
Courtesy of Tribeca
Spin Wars could have been an entire documentary just about these three women and their relationship dynamic. After Ruth was ousted by Elizabeth and Julie, she was approached to start FlyWheel Sports with Jay Galluzzo and David Seldin. What set FlyWheel apart was the addition of metrics to the classes. It was a means of creating accountability and measuring progress, but the momentum of FlyWheel would be stalled by Peloton’s presence. Elizabeth and Julie would eventually sell SoulCycle for millions, and they recently co-founded Peoplehood. Described as “SoulCycle without the bicycle,” Peoplehood claims to be a means of solving the lingering loneliness of the pandemic. A cursory look at the site, however, shows that they’re more interested in selling clothing than they are in solving loneliness, as the link to the non-shop section of the site has a 503 error.
Courtesy of Tribeca
SoulCycle is a brand built on exclusivity. The interviewees in the doc talk about the aluminum foil-looking bags that came with the purchase of any merchandise. How they became a status symbol in New York City. Part of the sick genius of SoulCycle was how hard they made people work to sign up for the classes. You couldn’t buy classes in bulk or a month ahead of time. Every Monday at noon was a bloodbath, but that added to the thrill of it all and the better-than-thou feeling of those who took part. Spin Wars, through a charming group of interview subjects, captures the feeling of madness the world of SoulCycle caused. They described these classes as deeply emotional and orgasmic, which probably accounted for how easily people fell under the spell of SoulCycle.
Spin Wars is fairly standard in its documentary execution, but for those who love a bit of toxic start-up gossip, it sure is a wild ride. Of course, beneath the fast-paced style and the quips from the comedian interviewees/ex-riders is the reality that it’s often people who don’t fit the hegemonic norm who bear the brunt of these toxic cultures. Like the Beanie Babies and Cabbage Patch Kids documentaries, Spin Wars is about an industry that makes little sense from the outside, but for those who found spiritual awakening in a sweaty spin studio, it was everything.
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