It’s no secret that true crime is obviously having a moment right now (or for the last year). I’ve been obsessed with true crime ever since I was a little girl. True story- when I was 7, my dad took me to the dinosaur exhibit at the museum and there was this little sandbox where kids could pretend to dig for dinosaur bones (clearly wasn’t social distancing friendly). I turned to the boy next to me –I had no effing idea who he was – and proclaimed “I know that Natalee Holloway is dead.  They say she’s still missing, but I know the sharks got her”. This poor boy’s mom gave me and my dad the DIRTIEST FUCKING LOOK ~EVER~, and my dad had to explain to me that not all kids were as cool as like me, because they didn’t watch the news.

We’re officially going on nearly one year the coronavirus pandemic, and hopefully you know that you should be practicing social distancing and STAYING. THE. FUCK. INDOORS (but if you don’t, let that be a reminder). Since we all have way too much time on our hands now (but make sure you wash them while singing ‘happy birthday’ twice!!!), I decided to compile a list of all of the best / my personal favourite true crime Netflix shows to make your quarantine days a little less dreary.

Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez

Aaron Hernandez is an ex-New England Patriots player who was convicted for the murder of Odin Lloyd in 2015, a semi-pro football player who also just happened to be his future brother-in-law. But, if that’s not enough to get to you to watch, Hernandez was indicted for ANOTHER DOUBLE MURDER, while he was on trial for the murder of Lloyd. I get really fired up talking about the case of Aaron Hernandez, like I went on a tangent in one of my university classes talking about this Netflix special, so all I’m going to say is: “you need to watch this ASAP if you haven’t already”

Evil Genius

This might be one of my top 3 true-crime stories ever, just because it is so unbelievable. Evil Genius tells us about the murder of Brian Wells, an American pizza delivery man who died during a complex plot involving – stay with me here – a bank robbery, scavenger hunt, and a homemade explosive device. This case was super high profile in 2003, because 1) it was 2003 and; 2) THIS WAS ALL SHOWN ON LIVE FUCKING TV. This docuseries is only four-parts, making it super easy to binge, especially when you’re avoiding working from home.

The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann

Imagine taking what you thought would be a nice family trip to a beach resort in Portugal, only for your child to be kidnapped while you’re out for dinner. For the McCann family, this isn’t just a worst-case scenario, but their real life. In 2007, 3-year-old Madeleine McCann disappeared while on a family trip in Portugal, and the story quickly became a sensation in the United Kingdom. Basically, Madeleine is the UK’s JonBenet Ramsey. This docuseries takes viewers through what it was like to experience the news firsthand and what it was like to be on the ground during the search for Madeleine.

Unsolved Mysteries

Unsolved Mysteries dropped in July and much like all TV nowadays, is a reboot of a show that was on in the 1980’s. There are six episodes that deal with crimes and weird happenings that have yet to be solved (hence the name). If you’re the type of person who likes to make conspiracy boards and go down Reddit rabbit holes at 2am, then this show is for you!  If you have already watched tried to solve every case from Season 1, luckily for you, Season 2 is coming out this fall with more unexplained disappearances, tragic events and bizarre occurrences. Time to get your detective hats on people!

Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich

I’ll never forget where I was when I found out that Jeffrey Epstein had “committed suicide”- it was 10:00am on a sunny summer morning, and I had just gotten the TMZ notification that Jepstein had dearly departed. There are theories abound of what had actually happened to him in that prison cell (but it definitely wasn’t suicide). This documentary focuses on the girls (now women) he abused and trafficked, and how his money, access, and power all allowed it to happen for years. It was the rich and powerful’s worst kept secret. Jeffrey Epstein was connected to some of the most powerful people in the world, and it makes me suspicious that literally every man in charge of anything ever was involved. My parents and I have discussed on the reg who was responsible for what happened- my parents think Trump, but I think it was the royal family, in case anyone was curious what we think.

American Murder: The Family Next Door

American Murder: The Family Next Door is many people’s worst nightmare: a “worried” husband who is later revealed to have murdered his wife and children who seemingly disappeared without a trace. If you live under a rock, this documentary tells the disturbing true story about Shannan Watts and her children, 4-year-old Bella, 3-year-old Celeste and her unborn son Nico, who were reported missing in Colorado in August of 2018. However, what sets this documentary apart from every other is that it uses archival footage including texts, social media posts and videos, police recordings and home videos to show the real, tragic story and give a voice to the victims of this crime.

Wild Wild Country

What would a true crime post be without mentioning some cult action? The first time I watched Wild Wild Country was in one of my university classes that was focused around “New Religious Movements”, which is just a fancy term for cult.  The 6-part documentary is about the controversial Indian guru Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and his community of followers in the Rajneeshpuram community located in the town of Antelope, Oregon. Wild, Wild Country chronicles the conflict between the Rajneeshs and the locals of Antelope which lead to the first bioterror attack in the United States. If Covid hasn’t taught you to stay away from a communal salad bar, this documentary will…trust me, after watching this, you’ll understand.

Don’t Fuck With Cats

This truly vile true crime docuseries starts out with animals getting hurt, specifically (judging from the title), cats. As we all know, rule number one of the internet is you don’t fuck with cats, so a group of Facebook vigilantes became super motivated to start a group to find whoever hurt these cats. From there, this search escalates into a game of cat and mouse (no pun intended). I won’t go into detail, because it’s just too effed up, but this is about a guy who made a video of himself killing two kittens and it really escalates from there. Like 0-holy fuck, real fast. This isn’t for the faint of heart, so be prepared to cry, squirm, vomit, or all of the above.

Making a Murderer

This one has been on Netflix forever, but if you’re just getting into true crime or you didn’t have Netflix for the last 5 years, this is for you. Making a Murderer tells us the story of Steven Avery, a Wisconsin man wrongfully imprisoned for 18 years… more than once. Basically, this series tells us everything that is wrong with the American justice system. Thank God, I live in Canada.

Honourable Mention: The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez

The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez is not for the sensitive or the faint of heart. The docuseries talks about the 2013 murder and abuse of Gabriel Fernandez, and the failure of the system to protect him. During the two years of production on the series, producers kept a therapist on call because of the disturbing nature of the content, so you know this is going to pull at your heartstrings.

I think that there is something for every true crime aficionado on this list, so I hope you get everything that you little true crime seeking heart desires. BUT, on the off chance that I did miss a crime doc (rare), please hit me up in the comments—my nightmare material is running low.

Images: BBC Radio; Comedy Central; Netflix