If you are looking to watch something besides The Flash and Stranger Things, check out our list of best true crime documentaries on Netflix. They will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat.
True crime is a subgenre of film and literature that focuses on real crime and actions of real people. Writers and filmmakers often do their own research about the crime cases they present while also taking into consideration the official version of the story. When it comes to true crime documentaries, the filmmakers can opt to stay faithful to the source material and tell the story that fits the evidence they have. In other cases, the documentary makers can give their own versions of the events and be highly speculative.
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The people, of course, love mystery and thrillers, so the true crime genre has become highly successful. One of the main appeals of the genre lies in the fact that it is always more exciting to watch or read about something that actually happened rather than something that is the product of someone’s imagination. This especially goes for books and movies. When it comes to documentaries, there are lots of content with highly doubtful quality that tries to cash in on the true crime popularity. For example, all those poorly made reality true crime “documentaries” on Crime and Investigation Channel that try to make something out of thin air. On the other side, there are some documentaries that really bring quality and well-researched representation of a particular case. In case you don’t have a Netflix subscription but you want to watch such documentaries, why don’t you check out our list of 19 Best Crime Documentaries on Hulu.
In order to find out the best true crime documentaries on Netflix, we took recommendations from multiple sources about best true crime documentaries overall and on Netflix from Paste Magazine and Huffington Post. The documentaries were then checked for their availability (New on Netflix) and ranked according to IMDb rating. Let’s checked them all out.
16. The Witness
IMDb Rating: 7.1
This documentary revolves around the murder of Kitty Genovese and focuses on the efforts of her brother William to investigate the crime further. Kitty Genovese was stabbed to death in front of her apartment building in 1964. The haunting part of the story about her death is that close to 40 people heard or saw the attack when it occurred and no one came to help her.
15. Tabloid
IMDb Rating: 7.1
Tabloid tells the story about the sex assault that happened in England when a woman from the United States, called Joyce McKinney, abducted Mormon missionary Kirk Anderson and raped him. Before she could be trialed, she escaped to the United States. Besides telling the story about the events, the documentary also focuses greatly on Britain’s tabloids Daily Mirror and Daily Express and their battle to reveal more details about the case.
14. 3½ Minutes, Ten Bullets
IMDb Rating: 7.2
The documentary talks about events from November 2012, when a man named Michael Dunn killed 17-year-old Jordan Davis after a dispute over the loud music playing from Davis’ car. Besides the incident itself, the documentary also follows the subsequent trial where Dunn was found guilty, protest after the shooting and media coverage of the events.
13. Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer
IMDb Rating: 7.2
We mentioned Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer on multiple other lists, but in case you didn’t follow us lately (which you really should), the documentary focuses on Aileen Wuornos, serial killer sentenced to death for killing seven men. It is a follow-up to Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Killer, which revolved around the Wuornos’ trial. While shedding some new light on the case, Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer mostly explores the mental state of Wuornos and features an interview recorded one day before her execution.
12. Into the Abyss
IMDb Rating: 7.3
Brought to you by the legendary documentary director Werner Herzog, Into the Abyss is the story about Michael Perry, death row inmate who was found guilty of a triple homicide that occurred in Texas. The documentary tells the story about the murders, Perry’s trial, and contains interviews with Perry, law enforcers and members of victims’ families.
11. Audrie & Daisy
IMDb Rating: 7.3
This entry on our list of best true crime documentaries on Netflix talks about three cases of rape that occurred in the United States in 2011 and 2012. In each case, the rape victim was an underage girl. In two cases the girls were cyber bullied and subjected to abuse after the assault. Finally, in one case, the photos of the attack were distributed through social networks, causing the girl to commit suicide.
10. Team Foxcatcher
IMDb Rating: 7.3
Dave Schultz was an American wrestler and Olympic gold medalist from 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. While he prepared for another Olympic Games in 1996, he was killed by John Eleuthère du Pont, who sponsored the team Foxcatcher that Schultz was part of. John Eleuthère du Pont was found guilty and sentenced to 13 – 30 years in prison, but the motives of his attack were never revealed. Team Foxcatcher covers the life of Dave Schultz while also giving its take on his murder.
9. Who Took Johnny
IMDb Rating: 7.3
Who Took Johnny is chilling documentary that will make you pick up the phone and call your kid. It talks about the case of missing 12-year-old paperboy Johnny Gosch, who was presumably kidnapped on September 5, 1982. The documentary focuses primarily on the quest of Johnny’s mother Noreen to find her son. It features a collection of archival footage, interviews with Gosch’s family, friends, eyewitnesses and law enforcers.
8. Killer Kids
IMDb Rating: 7.5
This is a Canadian documentary series that covers murder cases where the murderers were teens and juveniles. The series has 4 seasons, but you can only check the first one on Netflix.
7. The Imposter
IMDb Rating: 7.5
We are continuing our list of best true crime documentaries on Netflix with The Imposter that talks about Frédéric Bourdin, French impersonator who managed to trick one family from Texas in thinking that he is their missing relative. Eventually, his con was discovered thanks to the efforts of private investigators and FBI agents. The documentary tells the story about Bourdin and contains interviews with him, the family and investigators.
6. The Fear of 13
IMDb Rating: 7.7
Nick Yarris has spent 23 years of his life waiting to be executed for the murder he didn’t commit. Finally, after the DNK analysis, he was freed. In the documentary, Yarris tells the whole story about his life, including the trial and describes how it feels to wait for what looked like imminent death.
5. The Thin Blue Line
IMDb Rating: 8.1
If you don’t think one documentary can change someone’s life, think again. The Thin Blue Line is widely regarded as one of the best documentaries ever made and talks about the case, Randall Dale Adams. Adams was sentenced to death for the murder he didn’t commit. Thanks to the efforts of the filmmakers, who presented new evidence and the discoveries in the documentary, his case was reviewed and he was found not guilty. For those who only have time to watch one documentary from our list of the best true documentaries on Netflix, make sure this is the one.
4. Deadly Women
IMDb Rating: 8.2
Deadly Women is a documentary mini-series at the 4th spot on the list of best true crime documentaries on Netflix that revolves around cases in which women were murderers. Each episode has a common theme and focuses on 3 cases. The series features scene reenactments as well as interviews with families of the victims and killers, investigators who worked on the case and other experts.
3. The Keepers
IMDb Rating: 8.5
Netflix original, this 7-episode mini-series, the next one on the list of best true crime documentaries on Netflix revolves around the murder of sister Catherine Cesnik in 1970 that remained unsolved to date. Besides telling the story and covering the various aspects of the event, this series deals with potential motives for Cesnik’s murder including her reveal that two priests were members of sexual abuse network.
2. Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father
IMDb Rating: 8.6
Created by Kurt Kuenne, this documentary that ranks 2nd on our list of best true crime documentaries on Netflix, was a way for Kuenne to preserve the memory of his friend Andrew Bagby at first. Later, it became much more. Bagby was murdered by his girlfriend Shirley after he broke up with her. After she had been arrested, Shirley revealed that she carries Bagby’s child. The later events turned this dedication into true crime documentary. You will have to watch the documentary to find out the rest.
1. Making a Murderer
IMDb Rating: 8.8
We will finish our list of best true crime documentaries on Netflix with another mini-series. It is also released by Netflix and tells the story about Steven Avery who currently serves life imprisonment without parole possibility. Avery was first sentenced to 32 years and served 18 years for sexual assault and murder he didn’t commit.After he had been exonerated in 2003, he was charged with unrelated murder in 2005 and sentenced to life in prison in 2007. Making a Murderer was filmed for 10 years and covers the life of Avery, the trials, and investigations. Documentary also follows Avery’s nephew Brendan Dassey, who was found guilty of the murder of Teresa Halbach alongside his uncle and sentenced to life in prison. His appeal was accepted and currently awaits for appeal resolution. The season 2 of the series is currently in the making and will focus more on Dassey.
