It's a pretty rare thing that a serious documentary series (I do not mean a reality series) captures the zeitgeist so completely that it takes over the cultural conversation for months. It's happened twice recently: once with HBO's The Jinx, but even more fully with Netflix's Making a Murderer. Filmmakers Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos' exhaustive look at the life of Steven Avery -- a man convicted and serving a prison sentence for murder, even though his innocence is an ongoing question -- captivated viewers with its twists. Is Avery innocent? Is it right to give this much time and fame to someone who might have actually committed a heinous murder? Is this social justice filmmaking? Regardless, it was ambitious, and often difficult to watch.
The ambiguity of Avery's story, especially in the way that Ricciardi and Demos attempt to present all sides of the case, is a large part of what made Making a Murderer stay in the minds of viewers, who naturally wanted to discuss possibilities and theories and more. Now, unlike NPR's Serial -- which fumbled its second season by focusing on a well-known story rather than another obscure one, or continuing to report on the events of Season 1 -- Netflix has confirmed that there will be further investigation into Steven Avery's story with new episodes.
Image via Neflix
The new installments will take fans of the acclaimed documentary series back inside the story of convicted murderer Steven Avery, and his co-defendant, Brendan Dassey, as their respective investigative and legal teams challenge their convictions and the State fights to have the convictions and life sentences upheld.
This next chapter will provide an in-depth look at the high-stakes post-conviction process, as well as, the emotional toll the process takes on all involved.
The episodes will offer exclusive access to Avery’s new lawyer Kathleen Zellner and Dassey’s legal team, led by Laura Nirider and Steve Drizin, as well as intimate access to the families and characters close to the case
No date has been given yet for when the series will return, but Netflix is smart to continue riding this wave of attention for the series, especially after it garnered 6 Emmy nominations. But, does that also mean that Ricciardi and Demos are no longer tackling their Johnson & Johnson-focused documentary, as announced last month, that was adapting a series of Huffington Posts articles titled, America’s Most Admired Lawbreaker? Or is this just in addition to that? We'll let you know more as it's announced.
