The Best True Crime Series To Stream Right Now

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When author Michelle McNamara began investigating the unsolved case of the murderer known as the Golden State Killer or the East Area Rapist, she couldn’t have predicted that this gripping tale would become known as one of the best true crime series. Now streaming on HBO Max, the real-life story of a crew of amateur sleuths using the power of the internet to crack down on a case that went unsolved for decades is an incredible one. With the help of a dedicated law enforcement officer, the investigative team is able to put an end to a terror that haunted California residents years ago. 

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While serial killers and unsolved murders may be all the rage in the world of crime, one of the best true crime series currently on Netflix is one that focuses on a cult. An undershared story of an Indian guru’s takeover of a Portland town by any means necessary makes for an incredibly bingeable show titled Wild Wild Country. When Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and his assistant Ma Anand Sheela brought their giant following to Wasco County, Oregon, their numbers quickly gave them political power within the small town. But, not everything is as it seems in this series about lies, deception, and murder. 

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In 2017 and 2019 Netflix tried something different with The Confession Tapes. Instead of focusing on one single case or subject, this docuseries followed a handful of cases involving possible false confessions. Playing up the drama to make it one of the best true crime series, the show gave audiences an in-depth look at the inmates living behind bars who vehemently denied their murder convictions. Bringing in experts to pick apart each case one by one, the series demonstrates how things like mental health and miscarriages of justice play into eliciting false confessions.

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One of the most infamous serial killers received a four-part docuseries courtesy of Netflix and the legendary documentarian Joe Berlinger (Paradise Lost) back in 2019. Shining a light on the deceitful cunningness and charm that allowed a complete monster to claim the lives of a staggering amount of victims, Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes gives audiences the stranger-than-fiction story of the man who would later be played by Zac Efron in another Netflix production. Blending archival footage of Bundy himself as well as interviews with surviving victims and those closest to the killer, not only is this one of the best true crime series out there but it’s a must-watch for any true crime buff. 

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Not only has Netflix proven itself a formidable opponent against other networks venturing into true crime, but the streamer has especially carried the torch for those wrongfully accused. Adapted from the John Grisham 2006 non-fiction book, The Innocent Man followed the heartbreaking story of a former minor league baseball player who was wrongfully convicted in the late ‘80s of a rape and murder. After receiving the death sentence, the man’s case was picked up by the Innocence Project, which fought tooth and nail to exonerate him. The twists and turns that The Innocent Man takes will keep you on the edge of your seat and make you understand why it’s on our list for the best true crime series.

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If you want to have your brain flipped upside down, this is the best true crime series for you. Netflix took the insane and hard-to-believe story of a bank heist in Erie, Pennsylvania that was initially thought to be carried out by one man – Brian Wells. With a bomb strapped to his neck, the robber attempted to pull off his heist – but that’s just where the story begins. Filmmaker Trey Borzillieri goes down a dark path of deciphering the truth from the lies after speaking with Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong – the woman who may have just been behind the entire thing. We won’t ruin it for you but that’s just where the twists begin.

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Not only is The Staircase one of the best true crime series to get a documentary telling but Netflix’s original production so captivated audiences that HBO jumped in on the money-making brand and gave it a dramatized twist starring Toni Collette, Colin Firth, and Sophie Turner. When a famous author is accused of murdering his wife he vehemently denies the accusations. But, as blood spatter analysis, tales from his past, and a motive begin to come out of the woodwork, it’s anyone’s guess what’s real and what’s fiction. This one will definitely keep you on the edge of your seat as you watch the investigation turn into courtroom proceedings and beyond. 

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In 2010, Andrew Jarecki cast Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst in a dramatized version of a very real missing persons case. When the film came out, the man at the center of it all, Robert Durst, reached out to the filmmaker to ask him if he’d like to do an interview. What happened next is why this title landed itself at such a high position on our list of the best true crime series. Each episode of this HBO docuseries is stranger than the one before it with an absolutely gob-smacking finale that will knock the wind out of you. 

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As we previously said, not only is Netflix the home of the cream of the crop when it comes to the best true crime series, but the streamer also has a penchant for bringing the justice system to justice should they see it necessary. Such was certainly the case in their docuseries, Making a Murderer which followed the sexual assault and attempted murder of a woman at the hands of Steven Avery and his nephew Brendan Dassey.

After coerced confession rumors begin to surface, the entire legal process is called into question creating a very engaging story. If it’s your first time watching the series, which first aired in 2015, you’ll be luckier than the rest of us who had to wait three full years for a follow-up season in 2018. Both seasons are now streaming on Netflix.