7 true-crime shows that went too far, from Monster’s Ed Gein to Night Stalker – and where to watch

Okay, so I’ve been totally sucked into *Monster: The Ed Gein Story* on Netflix, and it’s currently number one in the UK. Honestly, it’s disturbing stuff, and I probably *shouldn’t* be watching it, but I can’t look away! It’s a 10-part series, and a lot of people are saying it goes way too far with how it shows things, which has caused a lot of criticism.

It was so disturbing and difficult to watch that a lot of people turned it off. Even as true crime enthusiasts, we think *Monster* takes things too far. This made us wonder: what other shows or movies are equally unsettling? Get ready, because we’re about to share our picks.

Dahmer

When discussing Ed Gein’s story, it’s impossible to ignore *The Dahmer Story* because it was the first installment in the series and established its overall style – for both good and bad.

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Honestly, I was really disappointed with that 10-part series. The people making it kept saying they wanted to be sensitive and respectful to the victims, but it just didn’t feel that way at all – and I’m not alone in thinking that. It came across as super exploitative, and while there were moments where you could see a good story trying to break through, it kept getting dragged back down. It was like the show couldn’t resist focusing on the most horrific details, even though they claimed they weren’t trying to sensationalize things. It just felt… wrong.

It seems the team behind *Monster* paid attention to the feedback on *Dahmer* and deliberately pushed boundaries even further with the story of Ed Gein.

Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is available on Netflix.

Love and Death

We enjoyed a lot about HBO’s true-crime drama, *Love and Death*, and we said so when it first came out. The show was visually appealing and captivating, focusing on the story of Candace Montgomery (called “Candy”), brilliantly portrayed by Elizabeth Olsen. However, the series became overly focused on Candy herself, and didn’t offer much in the way of other viewpoints or broader context, despite Olsen’s strong performance.

Unlike Candy, the character of Betty – who died at home after being brutally attacked with an axe – wasn’t developed with much depth. The story didn’t allow viewers to feel sympathy for her or truly understand her perspective, even though Candy claimed self-defense, which the jury accepted.

And honestly, all of that happened *before* we got to the really intense part. Considering how things ended for Betty – it was super brutal and violent – the show decided to show it all over again, and they didn’t hold back. It was seriously disturbing to watch.

It’s important to be honest without being needlessly graphic or disrespectful. There’s a limit to how far a story should go to avoid exploiting the pain of victims and their families, and simply aiming for shock. Unfortunately, *Love and Death* crossed that line.

Love and Death is available to stream on ITVX.

The Staircase

I recently checked out *The Staircase*, and it was wild! It’s based on the true story and the documentary about Michael Peterson, who was accused of killing his wife after she was found at the bottom of their staircase. The show really dives into the trial, which was already pretty famous thanks to the docu-series. He was originally convicted, but later that was changed to voluntary manslaughter back in 2017. The cast was amazing too – Colin Firth, Toni Collette, and Sophie Turner were all in it!

Because Kathleen’s death was so puzzling, many different ideas emerged about what might have caused it – and one particularly strange theory even involved an owl.

The HBO series drew criticism from Jordan Peterson and the documentary filmmakers, but what was most upsetting to watch as a viewer was the constant revisiting of theories about Kathleen’s death. The show repeatedly re-enacted her final moments from various angles and perspectives throughout the episodes.

The Staircase is available on Sky Atlantic and NOW.

The People v OJ Simpson

The first installment of Ryan Murphy’s *American Crime Story* anthology, focusing on the O.J. Simpson murder case – where he was accused of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman – unfortunately doesn’t quite hit the mark.

A common complaint about this story is that the focus tends to be more on O.J. Simpson than on the people who were harmed, and this new adaptation seems to repeat that pattern by still centering the narrative around him.

Things got even more complicated because the Kardashians were right in the middle of it all! You see, their dad, Robert Kardashian, was one of OJ’s lawyers, and he was actually good friends with him too. It’s crazy to think about now, considering how famous the Kardashians are – they’re practically a celebrity dynasty – but back then, their connection to the case was a huge part of the story.

The show *The People v. O.J. Simpson* constantly referenced the case and its famous figures, which felt forced and disruptive. And that was before even noticing John Travolta’s very noticeable wig, which was a major distraction.

All in all, The People v OJ Simpson was a lesson in bad taste for true crime dramatisations.

American Crime Story: The People v OJ Simpson is available on Disney+ in the UK.

Tiger King

Back in 2020, when everyone was stuck at home, the show *Tiger King* became a huge phenomenon. It was unbelievably strange and captivating, quickly spreading across the internet. It inspired countless memes, launched some people to fame, and even influenced Halloween costumes.

Looking back, it’s obvious that the documentary *Tiger King* focused too much on inappropriate and sensitive topics for a show about big cats, and shouldn’t have sensationalized them for viral attention.

Joe Exotic quickly became famous for his unusual personality, but he was also charged with serious offenses, including attempting to arrange a murder. He is currently in prison for these crimes.

Despite its many issues, the show *Tiger King* was ultimately harmful to women. While perhaps not the original goal, the series prominently featured Joe Exotic expressing his intense dislike for Carole Baskin – repeatedly calling her names and falsely claiming she’d fed her husband to her tigers. Carole Baskin had to continually deny this accusation, and reports later surfaced regarding the husband’s whereabouts. Despite her being the victim, these harmful claims became central to the show’s popularity.

Tiger King is available on Netflix.

Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer

Netflix’s new four-part documentary focuses on Richard Ramirez, who committed a series of horrific crimes—including murders and rapes—that terrified Los Angeles in the 1980s. The series emphasizes the shocking details of his crimes.

Look, I get why they showed the details of what he did, even the really dark stuff. It *is* a documentary, and those things actually happened, so leaving them out would feel wrong. As a viewer, I want the full picture, even if it’s unsettling.

The documentary *Night Stalker* didn’t offer a complete account and lacked detailed interrogations. By leaving many questions unanswered, it unintentionally fueled the myths and widespread fear surrounding the case. Ramirez actively promoted a satanic image—he even displayed a pentagram during the trial—and the timing of the infamous “Satanic Panic” strongly suggests a connection to his crimes.

It’s creepy how Richard Ramirez, like Ed Gein before him, really stuck in our collective imagination. And then *American Horror Story* took it even further with that Night Stalker storyline in 2019 – it was seriously unsettling. They basically took all our fears about him and turned him into this totally over-the-top, literal devil on screen, claiming he was raised by Satan! It was a really disturbing way to portray him, but it definitely played on the public’s fascination and fear.

The documentary *The Night Stalker* could have provided a fresh perspective on the Richard Ramirez case, but ultimately it retread familiar ground, focusing more on shock value than new understanding.

Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer is available on Netflix.

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2025-10-09 14:53