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The documentary ‘Spin Wars,’ about the rise of SoulCycle, Flywheel and Peloton, is scheduled for release on Amazon and Apple TV on Dec. 22. It features SoulCycle co-founder Ruth Zukerman describing how she says she was removed as a partner, a dispute she has discussed before but says she is now ready to address in greater detail.
The documentary ‘Spin Wars’, which revisits the rise of SoulCycle, Flywheel and Peloton, is scheduled to arrive on Amazon and Apple TV on Dec. 22, putting SoulCycle co-founder Ruth Zukerman’s account of her departure before a wider audience. Zukerman says in the film that fellow founders Elizabeth Cutler and Julie Rice told her she was no longer a partner; her account is one part of a documentary about the expansion and tensions of boutique indoor cycling.
Greenwich Entertainment acquired North American rights to the film, according to Deadline. Directed by Philip Byron, ‘Spin Wars’ premiered at the Tribeca Festival in June and later screened at the Hamptons International Film Festival. The distributor describes it as a high-energy documentary about the rise of indoor cycling and what it calls the “dark side” of mind, body and soul culture.
Zukerman recounts in the film that she was blindsided during a meeting when Cutler and Rice told her she was no longer a partner. Page Six reported that Zukerman said she signed an agreement after leaving, but described its wording as “a bit loose.” Those details are her account; the supplied reporting does not include responses from Cutler or Rice about the events she describes.
At the Hamptons screening, Zukerman said she had kept the story private for years and later began questioning that choice. “I’m 68. I literally had a thought at one point two years ago … ‘Why am I not talking about this?’” she said, according to Page Six. She also described telling the story as cathartic. The film features Marion Roaman, a Peloton co-founder, alongside Zukerman.
A Founder’s Exit Reaches New Viewers
The release gives a new audience access to Zukerman’s version of a formative dispute in SoulCycle’s history. The company became a prominent name in boutique fitness, and the film connects its growth to broader competition among indoor-cycling businesses, including Flywheel and Peloton. The disagreement matters beyond a personal account because it concerns who held partnership status and control as a fast-growing brand developed.
The story also lands while SoulCycle is in a different phase from the one the documentary recalls. The brand is now owned by Equinox, has faced studio closures, and has not publicly named a successor to CEO Evelyn Webster, who announced her departure in June. The documentary does not, by itself, establish how the founders’ dispute affected the company’s later performance or current operations.
More broadly, Zukerman’s account adds to public discussion of founders’ roles after a business grows or changes ownership. It is a reminder that a company’s history can include disagreements over recognition, authority and the terms of a founder’s departure—issues that may not be visible to customers while a brand is expanding.
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The Dispute Before the Documentary
Zukerman has spoken about leaving SoulCycle before. In her 2018 memoir, ‘Riding High: How I Kissed SoulCycle Goodbye, Co-Founded Flywheel, and Built the Life I Always Wanted,’ she described her departure. A 2023 essay for HCM said the three founders never signed a partnership agreement despite her repeated requests. Zukerman wrote that Cutler and Rice later decided they no longer needed her as a partner and suggested she remain as an instructor; she said she accepted that arrangement while raising two children as a single mother.
She also discussed the split in a March episode of The JWE’s ‘Inspired to Lead’ podcast. The current documentary revisits the dispute with her on-camera account, which Page Six reported includes more detail than her previous public telling. Cutler and Rice left SoulCycle in 2016 and later launched Peoplehood, a guided group conversation business. The source material does not establish that the documentary includes their responses to Zukerman’s allegations.
‘Spin Wars’ also arrives amid changes at SoulCycle. Webster said in June she would leave after nearly six years to lead podcast company Audiochuck. Riders have reported local studio closures, and the company’s website lists 52 U.S. studios and one in London. Front Office Sports reported that SoulCycle lost $350 million in 2020 amid pandemic shutdowns and closed nearly a quarter of its locations in 2022.
““A high-energy documentary” charting “the improbable rise of indoor cycling and the dark side of ‘mind, body, soul’ culture.””
— Greenwich Entertainment, describing the film
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What the Film Does Not Resolve
The available reporting does not establish whether Cutler or Rice responded to Zukerman’s account, or whether ‘Spin Wars’ presents their perspectives on the partnership dispute. The terms of the agreement Zukerman says she signed after leaving are also not detailed beyond her description that its language was “a bit loose.” The specific legal or financial terms of her departure remain unclear from the supplied material.
It is also unclear how extensively the documentary addresses the founders’ differing accounts, or whether it includes documents or other evidence alongside interviews. Zukerman’s statements about what happened should be understood as her account of the split, not as independently established findings. SoulCycle, now owned by Equinox, did not immediately respond to a request for comment in the original report.
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Release and Audience Response
‘Spin Wars’ is scheduled to become available on Amazon and Apple TV on Dec. 22. The release will make the documentary accessible beyond its festival screenings, but the source material does not specify whether the date applies to every territory or describe additional distribution plans.
Any response from Cutler, Rice, SoulCycle or Equinox could add perspectives missing from the current reporting. For now, the confirmed next milestone is the film’s streaming release; no public statement from the former co-founders about the documentary is included in the available source material.
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Key Questions
When will ‘Spin Wars’ be released?
The documentary is scheduled to be released on Amazon and Apple TV on Dec. 22, according to the source report.
What does Ruth Zukerman say happened at SoulCycle?
Zukerman says in the film that Cutler and Rice told her she was no longer a partner during a meeting. She also said she signed an agreement after leaving and described its wording as “a bit loose.” These are her statements as reported, not independently established findings.
Who appears in the documentary?
The film features Ruth Zukerman, a SoulCycle co-founder, and Marion Roaman, a Peloton co-founder. It covers the rise of SoulCycle, Flywheel and Peloton.
Has Zukerman discussed her departure before?
Yes. She wrote about leaving SoulCycle in her 2018 memoir, addressed the founders’ partnership in a 2023 HCM essay, and discussed the split on a podcast in March. The documentary brings her account to a new audience and, according to the report, provides more detail than her earlier public statements.
Have Cutler or Rice responded to the account?
The supplied reporting does not include a response from Cutler or Rice. It also says SoulCycle did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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