The True Crime genre boom continues.
- What kinds of stories do the streamers prefer?
- Who gets the greenlights?
- Does your project fit the market?
With seventeen projects from Hulu, Netflix, Max, Showtime, Peacock and ID, we continue Camran Shealy‘s survey of the genre.
Previous True Crime Posts
- Part 1 includes The Tinder Swindler.
- Part 2 leads with Worst Roommate Ever.
- Part 3 features Sex, Lies and the College Cult.
Analysis
Watch our Pact webinars:
- StoryCentric founder and veteran programmer Ed Hersh explains how the definition of the genre is expanding and what producers need to know before pitching True Crime ideas.
- Veteran programming exec Dan Salerno analyzes recent True Crime commissions by WB Discovery’s ID network.
Gunther’s Millions
The Crime
A dog with a trust fund isn’t the strangest part of this story. Gunther’s eccentric handler also lived a luxe life with a cult-like entourage.
Commissioner
- Netflix
Directors
Production Company
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- Truth behind the world’s richest dog and star of Gunther’s Millions on Netflix
- What’s Next for Gunther, the World’s Richest Dog? Offering to ‘Buy Nicolas Cage’s Island’
Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal
The Crime
In South Carolina’s Lowcountry, the Murdaugh family dynasty began to crumble after a series of events over the course of six years caused the deaths of five people — Mallory Beach (a friend of Alex’s youngest son), Stephen Smith (a friend of Alex’s oldest son), Gloria Satterfield (Alex’s housekeeper), Paul Murdaugh (Alex’s youngest son), Maggie Murdaugh (Alex’s wife) — and the alleged attempted murder of Alex himself. And a lot of the evidence points to one man’s suspected involvement in either the deaths or the attempts to cover them up. – Netflix
Commissioner
- Netflix
Directors
Production Company
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- Body of teenager found dead near Murdaugh property to be exhumed
- Everything to Know About the Murdaugh Family Murders, Including Alex’s Conviction
Mumbai Mafia: Police vs the Underworld
The Crime
In 1990s Mumbai, a crime boss and his network wield unchecked power over the city – until the rise of ‘encounter cops’ who brazenly kill their targets. – IMDb
Commissioner
- Netflix
Directors
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- Mumbai Mafia: Police vs the Underworld – Netflix Review (3/5)
- Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Mumbai Mafia: Police Vs. The Underworld’ on Netflix, A Doc About Deadly Encounters Between Indian Cops And Gangsters
Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence
The Crime
A group of bright Sarah Lawrence College students fall under the dark influence of a friend’s father, Larry Ray. With unprecedented access to the survivors who lived with Ray, the film follows the cult from its origins through its still-unfolding aftermath.
Commissioner
- Hulu
Director
Production Companies
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- The True Story Behind Hulu’s ‘Stolen Youth: Inside the Cult at Sarah Lawrence’
- ‘Stolen Youth,’ About the Sarah Lawrence Sex Cult, Is the Year’s Most Disturbing Docuseries
- The Story Behind Hulu’s Sarah Lawrence Cult Docuseries
- See also Camran’s coverage of Peacock’s Sex, Lies and the College Cult (February 2023)
How I Caught My Killer
The Crime
The real-life stories behind unique homicide cases with in-depth interviews, authentic archival material and cinematic recreations all packaged together into a fresh spin in the genre.
Commissioner
- Hulu
Production Company
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- The 15 Best True-Crime Documentaries of 2023
- ‘How I Caught My Killer’ Trailer Reveals How Victims Help Solve Their Murders
Murder in Big Horn
The Crime
The deaths of a group of Native American women in rural Montana are the focus as Native families, journalists, and local law enforcement reveal a violent crisis set in motion almost 200 years ago.
Commissioner
- Showtime
Directors
Production Companies
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- ‘Murder in Big Horn’ Review: Showtime Doc on Missing Murdered Indigenous Women Has More Passion Than Focus
- A New Docuseries, Murder in Big Horn, Spotlights the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Crisis
- Murder in Big Horn Isn’t Your Typical True Crime Story
Killing County
The Crime
In a big city with the soul of a small town in the depths of California, after a terrible shooting in a hotel makes the Ramirez family question everything they know about their city: Bakersfield.
Commissioner
- ABC News
Director
Production Companies
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- ‘The Killing County’: How policing in one California county became notorious for its alleged brutality
- Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Killing County’ On Hulu, A Docuseries About Police-Involved Killings In And Around Bakersfield, CA
Victim/Suspect
The Crime
Young women tell the police they’ve been sexually assaulted, but instead of finding justice, they’re charged with the crime of making a false report, arrested, and even imprisoned by the system they believed would protect them.
Commissioner
- Netflix
Director
Production Companies
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- ‘Victim/Suspect’ Review: When the Accuser Becomes the Accused
- Two Tuscaloosa sexual assault cases featured in Netflix ‘Victim/Suspect’ documentary
- Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Victim/Suspect’ on Netflix, a Documentary Detailing How Police Turn Sexual Assault Victims Into False-Reporting Suspects
Take Care of Maya
The Crime
As a medical team tries to understand 10-year-old Maya Kowalski’s rare illness, they begin to question her parents. Suddenly, Maya is in state custody – despite a family desperate to bring their daughter home.
Commissioner
- Netflix
Director
Production Company
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- ‘Take Care of Maya’: Hospital’s accusations of child medical abuse allegedly drive mother to suicide
- An Allegation of Munchausen by Proxy, a Mom’s Suicide, a Daughter’s Pain: ‘Take Care of Maya’ Exclusive Clip
- What Happened to Maya When a 10-year-old girl complained of mysterious pain, a doctor suspected child abuse. How far would she go to prove it?
Missing: Dead or Alive?
The Crime
Follow officers from a South Carolina sheriff’s department as they urgently search for individuals who’ve disappeared under troubling circumstances.
Commissioner
- Netflix
Director
Producers
Press Coverage
- Is Netflix’s New Series Missing: Dead or Alive? Real or Fake?
- Missing: Dead or Alive? Season 1 Review – a below average entry in the true crime genre
- Missing: Dead or Alive has hit No. 2 on Netflix — stream it or skip it?
The Playing Card Killer
The Crime
A playing card left at a murder scene connects a string of killings by a notorious serial killer who terrorized Spain in 2003.
Commissioner
- Netflix
Director
Production Company
Executive Producer
Press Coverage
- The Playing Card Killer Netflix: Who was Alfredo Galán, where is he now?
- The Playing Card Killer — is it a true story? All your questions answered’
- The Playing Card Killer Season 1 Review – An unsettling case of a notorious serial killer presented poorly
I Am a Stalker
The Crime
Convicted stalkers tell the program, in their own chilling words, how love turned into a deadly obsession in face-first, captivating in-depth interviews.
Commissioner
- Netflix
Directors
Production Companies
Producers
Press Coverage
- I am a Stalker: Why are fans too ‘scared’ to watch the Netflix show?
- I Am A Stalker: 5 Things To Know About The Netflix Docuseries
- Stream It Or Skip It: ‘I Am A Stalker’ On Netflix, A Docuseries Where Stalkers And Their Victims Are Interviewed
Who Killed Robert Wone?
The Crime
In this riveting Clue-like murder mystery, investigators and true-crime sleuths attempt to unravel the truth behind the chilling, baffling and stranger-than-fiction death of Robert Wone.
Commissioner
- Peacock
Director
Production Company
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- Who Killed Robert Wone? The Suspects and Theories Explained
- Unsolved murder of DC lawyer Robert Wone ‘stranger than fiction,’ doc reveals: ‘Deeply troubling’
- Three Gay Men Were Accused Of Killing A Friend. A New Documentary Explores What Happened.
MH370: The Plane That Disappeared
The Crime
March 8th, 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappeared from radar. When the 239 people on board went missing, a global investigation into the greatest mystery of the modern age ensued. Despite official reports, countless theories, and tireless searches for evidence, one central question remained – What Are We Missing?
Commissioner
- Netflix
Directors
Production Company
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- Netflix’s MH370: The Plane That Disappeared viewers have same complaint about series
- Netflix Docuseries Charts 3 Dubious Paths to MH370’s Disappearance
- Flight MH370: Netflix doc reveals shocking theories about vanished Malaysia Airlines flight
Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York
The Crime
As the AIDS crisis intensifies in the early 1990s, homophobia and hate crimes increase, and a serial killer preys on gay men in New York City by infiltrating the queer nightlife to identify his victims.
Commissioner
- Max
Director
Production Company
- Little Punk
- Story Syndicate
- HBO Documentary Films
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer NY review – a masterclass in righteous, savvy TV
- Last Call review: HBO’s serial killer doc is powerful and infuriating
- ‘Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York’ Review: HBO Docuseries Pays Powerful Tribute to Lives Lost
How to Create a Sex Scandal
The Crime
A peaceful town in Mineola, Texas which is rocked in 2005 when neighborhood kids came forward with alarming information about a pedophile sex ring that operated out of a swingers club.
Commissioner
- Max
Directors
Production Companies
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- ‘How to Create a Sex Scandal’: What You Need to Know About the New Docuseries
- Stream It Or Skip It: ‘How To Create A Sex Scandal’ on MAX, A True Crime Docuseries About A Fake Pedophilic Sex Ring
- A Child Sex Scandal Rocked a Texas Town in 2005 — but Was It All a Lie?
The Curious Case of Natalia Grace
The Crime
Explores the mystery of a 6-year-old Ukranian orphan with a rare bone growth disorder, who actually turned out to be a full-grown adult.
Commissioner
- ID
Director
Production Companies
Executive Producers
Press Coverage
- The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: Where is she now?
- Everything We Know About Season Two of The Curious Case of Natalia Grace
- The Story Of A Ukrainian Orphan Accused Of Lying About Her Age Is Too Messy For TV
Thanks to Documentary Business editorial associates Camran Shealy and Caitlin Cooper.
