Sometimes reality is too attractive not to turn it into a television series and the catalogs of streaming platforms are full of historical facts and true stories of which someone said: “this must be turned into a series” . The darkest and most gruesome side of this sudden inspiration is found in productions based on serial killers, of which we have already spoken here, and on true crimes.
These productions have malevolent and terrible characters as protagonists that make us cringe on the sofa, fearing the worst. But we can’t stop watching, wondering how the story will end and even the tension may lead us to turn to the wisdom of Google. If you are one of those who enjoy these creations as addictive as they are chilling, we have prepared a selection that will keep you glued to the screen. But we are not responsible for the social misgivings that these stories arouse in you.
The Act
Joey King ( Fargo) and Patricia Arquette ( Escape at Dannemora ) star in this miniseries that we can find on Starzplay and that tells the story of Gypsy and Dee Dee Blanchard . The first is a young woman who is forced to spend her days at home due to a mysterious illness, the second is her mother, who is completely dedicated to taking care of her and protecting her from the attractiveness of her life as a teenager.
Composed of eight episodes, this story that includes the same events that we can see in the HBO documentary Mommy Dead and Dearest , The Act helped Patricia Arquette to win the Emmy for best supporting actress in a miniseries in 2019.
That’s how they see us
Created, written and directed by Ava DuVernay, this four-episode Netflix miniseries delves into one of the most controversial events in recent American history : the attack on a woman in Central Park and the subsequent imprisonment of five young African-American men.
Mindhunter
More than based on true crimes, this Netflix series is a complete compendium of the most terrible serial killers in the United States of the 70s . And although its interest is more psychological than criminal, it is one of the most interesting productions based on real events in recent years.
Jonathan Groff ( Looking ) and Holt McCallany ( Blue Bloods ) starred in this David Fincher-directed production that sent interest in serial killers skyrocketing , no matter how terrible they were.
Manhunt
The British Martin Clunes is in charge of this three-episode production that we can find in the Filmin catalog and recounts the investigations that were carried out to solve the crime of Amélie Delagrange . A young French woman who was brutally murdered in a London park in 2004.
Despite its brevity, this miniseries based on the memoirs of the detective who led the investigation focuses on police work, which does not end when the culprit is arrested . With the intensity and quality typical of British productions, it’s the perfect production for a rewarding afternoon on the couch.
Manhunt: Unabomber
Four years before he became Vision, Paul Bettany took on the role of terrorist Ted Kaczynski, who in the 1980s terrorized the United States by sending letter and package bombs . To find this elusive criminal, the FBI hired behavior analyst James Fitzgerald (Sam Worthington), a tireless man who worked his ass off to end the terrible threat facing the entire country.
Manhunt: Deadly Games
With the North American anthology that led by the title Manhunt , Kaczynski was followed by a more current story and with a completely different approach, that of Richard Jewell. In 1996, during the Atlanta Olympic Games, this security agent came across a bomb that, thanks to his expertise, caused no fatalities .
Cameron Britton, known for his work on Mindhunter , was commissioned to play Jewell in a story that Clint Eastwood also brought to the big screen under the name of the agent. The series is available in the Starzplay catalogue, it has 10 episodes and is an excellent proposal to delve into the criminal universe from a little-explored side, that of the false culprit .
Dirty John
This anthology made up of two seasons that we can find in the Netflix catalog, is based on the American podcast of the same name and tells the stories of two criminals who caused enormous damage to their families .
The first installment, with Eric Bana and Connie Britton as protagonists, focuses on the story of Debra Newell and John Meehan. After her four failed marriages, they meet on the internet and begin a relationship. Everything is going smoothly until Newell’s daughters become suspicious of him, hire an investigator and discover that behind his innocent appearance is a man with a long history of abuse, harassment and violence.
The People Versus OJ Simpson: American Crime Story
Recognized with nine Emmy Awards for best miniseries, the first season of Ryan Murphy’s crime anthology chose as its plot one of the events that marked the lives of Americans in the 90s : the murder of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman at the hands of the ex-husband of the first, the actor and American football player OJ Simpson.
With Cuba Gooding Jr. in the role of the main suspect, this production has a cast full of stars among which we find names like John Travolta, David Schwimmer and Sarah Paulson.
The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story
Another of the most famous crimes of the last decade of the 20th century was that of the designer Gianni Versace, which occurred at the entrance of his mansion in Miami Beach . With Édgar RamÃrez playing the well-known couturier, the production narrates in its nine episodes the persecution of his murderer, Andrew Cunanan (Darren Criss), while recounting their past and reflecting on the challenges faced by the Versace family in full mourning.
