From the pages of books to the screens of movies and television, real-life cases of serial killers have captured our attention for decades.
On July 4, 1969, an unknown man attacks Darlene Ferrin and Mike Mageau with a handgun at a lovers’ lane in Vallejo, California. One month later, the San Francisco Chronicle receives encrypted letters written by the killer calling himself the Zodiac, who threatens to kill a dozen people unless his coded message containing his identity is published.
Mindhunter revolves around FBI agents Holden Ford and Bill Tench, along with psychologist Wendy Carr, who operate the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit within the Training Division at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. They interview imprisoned serial killers to understand how they think, with the hope of applying this knowledge to solve ongoing cases. The first season takes place from 1977 to 1980, in the early days of criminal psychology and criminal profiling at the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
In 1969 Seattle, law student Ted Bundy meets Elizabeth Kendall, a young secretary and divorced mother. By 1974, news reports announce the recent murders of multiple young women, including two who disappeared in broad daylight at Lake Sammamish; a man resembling Ted was seen by several people asking women to help him load a sailboat onto a Volkswagen Beetle.
In the 1960s, Richard Kuklinski marries Deborah and the couple have two daughters. Roy DeMeo, a powerful mobster, shuts down the pornographic film business in which Kuklinski was involved and brings him on board to work as a contract killer after Kuklinski passes an impromptu audition: killing a homeless man with Roy’s gun.
After his December 2003 arrest, registered nurse Charlie Cullen was quickly dubbed ‘The Angel of Death’ by the media. But Cullen was no mercy killer, nor was he a simple monster. He was a favorite son, husband, beloved father, best friend, and celebrated caregiver. Implicated in the deaths of as many as 300 patients, he was also perhaps the most prolific serial killer in American history.
The film follows the 1993 murder and mutilation of three young boys in West Memphis, Arkansas, and the resulting trial of the three teenage boys found guilty of the killings. Visiting private investigator Ron Lax leads the defence of the suspected killers. Through his work on the case and conversations with Pam Hobbs, the mother of one of the dead children, Ron finds there may be more to the deaths than the authorities think.
In the woods, eight corpses have been discovered, bearing marks of brutal murder, rape, and mutilation. The deceased individuals are predominantly young and solitary, having fallen victim to conversing with an unknown person, which ultimately cost them their lives. Viktor Burakov, a proficient forensic specialist but an inexperienced investigator, is appointed by his Colonel to lead the inquiry. Based on the true story of the most savage and elusive serial killer on record.
Jeffrey Dahmer murdered 17 men and boys in the Midwest United States between 1978 and 1991 before being captured and incarcerated. He would become one of America’s most infamous serial killers. This is the story before that story. Jeff Dahmer is an awkward teenager struggling to make it through high school with a family life in ruins.
Elizabeth, a struggling mother, and her three sons seek refuge and stability by joining a neighborhood watch group led by John, who positions himself as the group’s ethical leader. Jamie, the 16-year-old son, admires John’s charm and perceives him as a positive influence, forging a close relationship with him. However, when John introduces Jamie to his twisted notion of justice, the young and impressionable Jamie faces a father figure who could be the most vicious predator he has ever met. Based on horrifying crimes discovered in Snowtown, Australia in 1999.
Elizabeth, a struggling mother, and her three sons seek refuge and stability by joining a neighborhood watch group led by John, who positions himself as the group’s ethical leader. Jamie, the 16-year-old son, admires John’s charm and perceives him as a positive influence, forging a close relationship with him. However, when John introduces Jamie to his twisted notion of justice, the young and impressionable Jamie faces a father figure who could be the most vicious predator he has ever met. Based on horrifying crimes discovered in Snowtown, Australia in 1999.
Mari Gilbert, Shannan Gilbert’s mother, relentlessly drives law enforcement agents to search for her missing daughter and, in the process, sheds light on a wave of unsolved murders of young female sex workers on the South Shore barrier islands of Long Island, committed by the Long Island serial killer.
The story of one of the most infamous cases in UK criminal history, that of serial killer Dennis Nilsen. Told through the prism of three men, the series explores the personal and professional consequences of coming into contact with a man like Nilsen.