[Please note that some of these true-crime shows may involve subjects such as suicide, domestic violence, and sexual abuse.]The Staircase miniseries released earlier this year has blurred the lines in the public view of Michael Peterson’s (Colin Firth) innocence regarding his involvement with the death of his wife, Kathleen (Toni Collette).
This 8-episode docudrama is based on the documentary of the same name, by French director Jean Xavier de Lestrade. It’s full of twists and turns, shady behavior, questionable police ethics, and of course… a suspicious death. As documentaries have to stick with facts and speculation, the dramatization of documentaries allows for much more flexibility in artistic choices. HBO Max's The Staircase was able to show detailed reenactments of each major theory surrounding Kathleen's death, including the controversial "Owl Theory," which was almost entirely omitted in the original documentary.
The death of Kathleen Peterson put the entire family through the wringer as they struggled to cope with their loss and the subsequent investigation and trials of their father.
As the show has just come to an end, it leaves behind many true crime docudrama fans sniffing out their next bingeworthy miniseries. This article will give you several options and tell you where you can watch them.
American Crime Story (2016-)
Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, creators of the American Horror Story franchise, have branched out past the horror genre to focus on true-crime stories set in the United States. The first season, The People v. O. J. Simpson, was very similar to The Staircase in that it focused mainly on the prosecution and defense teams during this highly controversial trial. The show won 9 Emmy Awards that year, second only to HBO’s Game of Thrones series, which won 12.
The People v. O. J. Simpson had 10 episodes and boasted a star-studded cast including Sarah Paulson, Cuba Gooding Jr., John Travolta, David Schwimmer, Bruce Greenwood, Kenneth Choi, Nathan Lane, and others.
The second season of American Crime Story, The Assassination of Gianni Versace has 9 episodes and follows Andrew Cunanan’s (Darren Criss) slow descent into madness. Cunanan was a real-life “Tom Ripley” as he lied and faked his way into the circles of the rich and famous. His ultimate goal (and target) was to get close to Versace (Édgar Ramirez) himself.
Impeachment: American Crime Story, is the third and most recent season of the franchise. The 10 episodes focus on the controversial scandal between President Bill Clinton (Clive Owen) and his White House intern, Monica Lewinsky (Beanie Feldstein).
The fourth season has not set a release date or announced cast yet but has been confirmed to be set in the 1970s, focusing on the notorious New York City nightclub: Studio 54.
The Girl From Plainville (2022)
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This 8-episode drama miniseries, created by Liz Hannah and Patrick Macmanus, follows the trial (and the events leading up to it) of teenage Michelle Carter (Elle Fanning) and her involvement with the suicide of her boyfriend, Conrad Roy (Colton Ryan).
It premiered the first three episodes on March 29th, with the last episode released during the first week of May, which is National Mental Health Awareness month.
Chloe Sevigny (American Horror Story: Asylum) received praise for her portrayal of Conrad’s mother, Lynn Roy. The show was also praised for navigating around such a delicate subject and bringing a human element to the story without sensationalizing it.
Unbelievable (2019)
Based on the Pulitzer-winning article, “An Unbelievable Story of Rape,” by authors T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong, Unbelievable is an 8-episode dramatization of the story of a woman, named Marie Adler (Kaitlyn Dever), who was charged with lying about having been raped.
Two detectives, Grace Rasmussen (Toni Collette) and Karen Duvall (Merritt Wever), who are based on real-life detectives Edna Hendershot and Stacy Galbraith, respectively, decide to take on the case. Despite Marie Adler’s troubled past, they aren’t convinced that she’s lying and fight to uncover the truth about what happened to her.
Pam & Tommy (2022)
This 8-episode Hulu original miniseries follows the tumultuous 3-year marriage between Pamela Anderson (Lily James) and Mötley Crüe drummer, Tommy Lee (Sebastian Stan) and the story behind the distribution of their infamous sex tape.
Rand Gauthier (Seth Rogen), an electrician working on the remodeling of Pam & Tommy’s mansion, becomes disgruntled when Tommy Lee refuses to pay for last-minute changes that Gauthier has charged to his credit card. After being fired, Gauthier returns to collect his tools and discovers a videotape containing explicit acts committed by Pam & Tommy during their honeymoon.
He then steals the tape and researches how he can make money through the distribution of the scandalous footage. While this miniseries is much more frivolous and goofy with some content, it does showcase the legal battle that ensues (and potentially ruins the marriage) for Pamela Anderson and then-husband Tommy Lee.
The Act (2019)
The 2015 story about the murder of Dee Dee Blanchard (Patricia Arquette) is full of twists and turns. There have been several documentaries that detail the circumstances surrounding her death at the hands of her own daughter, Gypsy Rose Blanchard (Joey King), and Gypsy’s boyfriend, Nick Godejohn (Calum Worthy).
Gypsy was told that she has battled cancer and other seriously debilitating illnesses her entire life. Wheelchair-bound, she relied heavily on her mother’s constant care. As she grew older and more rebellious in her desire for independence, she learned that these illnesses were a fabrication by her mother in a textbook case of Munchausen syndrome by proxy.
Out of desperation, she turns to the internet, where she meets Nick Godejohn. Together, the two of them devise a plan for Gypsy’s escape, which involved multiple discussions about the murder of her mother, Dee Dee.
The Dropout (2022)
Based on the ABC News Podcast of the same name, The Dropout follows the story of the founder of the biomedical technology company Theranos, Elizabeth Holmes (Amanda Seyfried), and her rise and fall from fortune and fame.
After dropping out of Stanford University, Holmes decides to try her hand at entrepreneurship, creating a company that promised technology that would revolutionize diagnostic and preventative healthcare through a simple blood test.
This 8-episode miniseries showcases the events chronologically (starting from when Holmes was a teenager) and breaks down all the factors that influenced the decisions she made along the way. So much for “fake it ‘til you make it.”
Inventing Anna (2022)
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Julia Garner (Ozark) stars in this 9-episode miniseries about con-artist Anna “Delvey” Sorokin, which is based on the New York article “How Anna Delvey Tricked New York’s Party People” by Jessica Pressler.
Posing as a German heiress, Sorokin (under the false name “Delvey”) infiltrated the rich and powerful of New York City and used those connections to garner hundreds of thousands of cash, products, and services.
Once Anna’s false persona starts to falter, she soon finds herself facing charges of grand larceny (amongst other charges) with a huge trial that follows, exposing all of Anna’s lies.
The Thing About Pam (2022)
This miniseries has only 6 episodes, but each one packs a punch. Renée Zellweger (Judy) stars as Pam Hupp, who was put on trial for the murder of Betsy Faria (Katy Mixon) in 2011.
After Russ Faria’s (Glenn Fleshler) conviction for the murder of his wife is overturned, the evidence points directly at the last person to see Betsy alive: Pam Hupp. This miniseries is well-rounded with other veteran actors such as Judy Greer (Jurassic World), Josh Duhamel (Safe Haven), and Sean Bridgers (Room).
Similar to Pam & Tommy, this show takes a more light-hearted, comedic approach to the events that occurred, spurring a mixed reception to this docudrama about a real-life homicide.
There is a strange fascination that people seem to have with true-crime stories. That being said, for some, a documentary may be “too dry,” and that’s where docudramas step in. Taking a real story and adding a few famous faces and performances seems to be all the rage lately, as the genre continues to grow in popularity.
For those who have watched the original documentaries, the dramatized miniseries only give them more content about a story they’re already interested in and familiar with. Like The Staircase, these docudramas can sometimes cause controversy over portrayals of events and the people involved, so it’s important to keep in mind that these are sometimes exaggerated versions of the true story.
As famous horror author, Stephen King is known to say; “Monsters are real… They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.”