There are countless police procedural movies and series in circulation today, with countless teams of fearless law enforcement officers solving countless crimes, one of them each week. These, in turn, tend to become stereotypical and – let’s face it – boring. There are just so many ways to break the law on TV. Perhaps this overload of procedurals is at least in part to blame for a renewed interest in “true-crime” documentaries and docudramas: after so many examples of fictional villains, it feels refreshing to dive into the mysteries of the real thing.
There is no way to tell if it was the pandemic’s fault that the Netflix documentary series about the eccentric Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage, better known by the moniker Joe Exotic, was such a massive hit. The controversial big cat breeder lost his livelihood while in jail, with Carole Baskin taking over the Tiger King’s menagerie, but he won’t have to fear distress once he gets out thanks to the popularity of his brand: CBS is developing a miniseries based on his life, with Nic Cage playing his role.
For the ever-growing number of fans of true-crime shows, streaming services and broadcast TV networks are preparing a brand new crop of content to binge-watch. Here are some of the most interesting ones to look forward to this autumn.
The Pembrokeshire Murders (ITV)
The ITV has been diving deep into the world of real-life criminals, turning their stories into exciting content to watch since the 2000 release of “This Is Personal: The Hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper”. Now, the channel is preparing the latest in its series of true-crime dramas: “The Pembrokeshire Murders”, based on the 2013 book “The Pembrokeshire Murders: Catching the Bullseye Killer” written by senior investigator Steve Wilkins and ITV journalist Jonathan Hill.
“The Pembrokeshire Murders” will be a three-part miniseries starring Luke Evans in the role of Detective Superintendent Steve Wilkins, and Keith Allen in the role of John Cooper, the serial killer.
ITV has not set a release date for the series. Filming has begun in January – hopefully, it will hit the screens before the end of the year.
The Serpent (BBC, Netflix)
Charles Sobhraj has had several monikers over the years – The Bikini Killer, The Splitting Killer – but perhaps the best-known of them all is “The Serpent”, especially due to his skill of evading capture. Between 1963 and 1997, he allegedly committed at least 12 murders, some of which were a byproduct of his other crafts – thievery and fraud.
His life is much like something a romance writer could imagine – a youngster from a dysfunctional family who supports himself with petty crime, who endears a high-society volunteer while in prison, who lives a double life split between the rich and the Parisian criminal underground. Besides, he found a partner in crime and life as well with whom he fled across Europe and Asia, living a life of fraud, robbery, and crime while establishing a family.
The series based on his life was set to be released earlier this year but its schedule was affected by the pandemic. The latest news about it speak of its relocation from Asia to Europe. The drama stars Tahar Rahim (Charles Sobhraj) and Jenna Coleman (Marie-Andrée Leclerc). It will likely be released in early 2021.
Inventing Anna (Netflix)
Anna Delvey was a rich German heiress with £50m+ in her trust fund that was held overseas. Whose heiress was she? Sometimes, of a diplomat, other times, a solar panel magnate. While in New York, she stayed at trendy hotels and frequented spas, salons, and award-winning restaurants. But somehow, her wallet was never at hand – but her friends were happy to “help her out” when paying the bills, and more.
Except for Anna Delvey never existed. She was a persona invented by Russian fraudster Anna Sorokina, and she stole at least $275,000 from various individuals – until she was arrested, tried, and imprisoned in 2019.
Her story and New York Times profile is at the basis of the upcoming Netflix series “Inventing Anna” set to be released later this year.
There are countless police procedural movies and series in circulation today, with countless teams of fearless law enforcement officers solving countless crimes, one of them each week. These, in turn, tend to become stereotypical and – let’s face it – boring. There are just so many ways to break the law on TV. Perhaps this overload of procedurals is at least in part to blame for a renewed interest in “true-crime” documentaries and docudramas: after so many examples of fictional villains, it feels refreshing to dive into the mysteries of the real thing.
There is no way to tell if it was the pandemic’s fault that the Netflix documentary series about the eccentric Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage, better known by the moniker Joe Exotic, was such a massive hit. The controversial big cat breeder lost his livelihood while in jail, with Carole Baskin taking over the Tiger King’s menagerie, but he won’t have to fear distress once he gets out thanks to the popularity of his brand: CBS is developing a miniseries based on his life, with Nic Cage playing his role.
For the ever-growing number of fans of true-crime shows, streaming services and broadcast TV networks are preparing a brand new crop of content to binge-watch. Here are some of the most interesting ones to look forward to this autumn.
The Pembrokeshire Murders (ITV)
The ITV has been diving deep into the world of real-life criminals, turning their stories into exciting content to watch since the 2000 release of “This Is Personal: The Hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper”. Now, the channel is preparing the latest in its series of true-crime dramas: “The Pembrokeshire Murders”, based on the 2013 book “The Pembrokeshire Murders: Catching the Bullseye Killer” written by senior investigator Steve Wilkins and ITV journalist Jonathan Hill.
“The Pembrokeshire Murders” will be a three-part miniseries starring Luke Evans in the role of Detective Superintendent Steve Wilkins, and Keith Allen in the role of John Cooper, the serial killer.
ITV has not set a release date for the series. Filming has begun in January – hopefully, it will hit the screens before the end of the year.
The Serpent (BBC, Netflix)
Charles Sobhraj has had several monikers over the years – The Bikini Killer, The Splitting Killer – but perhaps the best-known of them all is “The Serpent”, especially due to his skill of evading capture. Between 1963 and 1997, he allegedly committed at least 12 murders, some of which were a byproduct of his other crafts – thievery and fraud.
His life is much like something a romance writer could imagine – a youngster from a dysfunctional family who supports himself with petty crime, who endears a high-society volunteer while in prison, who lives a double life split between the rich and the Parisian criminal underground. Besides, he found a partner in crime and life as well with whom he fled across Europe and Asia, living a life of fraud, robbery, and crime while establishing a family.
The series based on his life was set to be released earlier this year but its schedule was affected by the pandemic. The latest news about it speak of its relocation from Asia to Europe. The drama stars Tahar Rahim (Charles Sobhraj) and Jenna Coleman (Marie-Andrée Leclerc). It will likely be released in early 2021.
Inventing Anna (Netflix)
Anna Delvey was a rich German heiress with £50m+ in her trust fund that was held overseas. Whose heiress was she? Sometimes, of a diplomat, other times, a solar panel magnate. While in New York, she stayed at trendy hotels and frequented spas, salons, and award-winning restaurants. But somehow, her wallet was never at hand – but her friends were happy to “help her out” when paying the bills, and more.
Except for Anna Delvey never existed. She was a persona invented by Russian fraudster Anna Sorokina, and she stole at least $275,000 from various individuals – until she was arrested, tried, and imprisoned in 2019.
Her story and New York Times profile is at the basis of the upcoming Netflix series “Inventing Anna” set to be released later this year.
