The Secret is a 2006 Australian-American spirituality documentary consisting of a series of interviews designed to demonstrate the New Thought "law of attraction" - the belief that everything one wants or needs can be satisfied by believing in an outcome, repeatedly thinking about it, and maintaining positive emotional states to "attract" the desired outcome.

The film and the subsequent publication of the book of the same name attracted interest from media figures such as Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres and Larry King.

Gozer Media of Collingwood, a suburb of Melbourne, is the design house responsible for the visual style and feel of the film and its companion book.

Nine put up less than 25% of the $3 million project[15] with additional funding from mortgaging Byrne's home and from an investment by Bob Rainone, "a former Internet executive in Chicago".

producer, director and screenwriter Betsy Chasse interviewed Secret co-producer Paul Harrington, who gave this description of Byrne's production methods: "We used the law of attraction during the making of the program.

[citation needed] In producing the film, the law was intentionally "packaged" with a focus on "wealth enhancement" — differing from the more spiritual orientation of the New Thought Movement.

[23] A review in salon.com described the packaging of the products related to the film as having "a look... that conjures a 'Da Vinci Code' aesthetic, full of pretty faux parchment, quill-and-ink fonts and wax seals.

Additionally, Prime Time Productions granted written permission to individuals or companies, via application at the official site, to provide free screenings of the film to public audiences.

Julie Mason, of the Ottawa Citizen, wrote that word of mouth about the film spread through Pilates classes, "get-rich-quick websites" and personal-motivation blogs.

[32] Jane Lampman, of the Christian Science Monitor, described The Secret as a brand promoting Secret-related teachers, seminars and retreats.

[27] Jerry Adler of Newsweek called it "breathless pizzazz" for a tired self-help genre;[4] "emphatically cinematic" and "driven by images and emotions rather than logic";[33] a blend of Tony Robbins and The Da Vinci Code;[3] and "the Unsolved Mysteries of infomercials".

[37] Within businesses using the DVD for employee-training and morale-building, author Barbara Ehrenreich called it "a gimmick" and "disturbing", like "being indoctrinated into a cult".

McGregor has said his first reaction on watching the DVD version was: “This is bullshit — but then something clicked for me.” He and girlfriend Dee Devlin, who manages his finances, started focusing on small things they wanted, such as a parking space closest to the doors of a local shopping centre.

[39] The concept was parodied on Parks and Recreation, The Chaser's War on Everything, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Simpsons, Boston Legal and Saturday Night Live.

Australian author Vanessa J. Bonnette is interviewed, and Bonnette—when referring to the book version of The Secret—asserts, "that is my work and Rhonda Byrne has stolen it".

[47] In August 2008, The Australian reported that director Heriot and Internet consultant Dan Hollings were in a legal dispute with Byrne over pay from the project.

[49] Paul Harrington, the producer for the film, reported that broadcast TV—instead of the Internet—was initially planned as the medium for the first release: ...we had as our vision to go out to the whole world in 24 hours on television.

We were trying to force, to control the "how" of the universe, when what we were supposed to do was just focus on the vision...[17]The Secret premiere was broadcast through the Internet on 23 March 2006 using Vividas technology.

[23][50] The drama film The Secret: Dare to Dream, starring Katie Holmes and Josh Lucas, was released on July 31, 2020.