The 10 Best True Crime Shows To Binge Right Now

See 'American Manhunt: O.J. Simpson,' 'Scamanda,' 'Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy' and more

Chris Nashawaty,

AARP

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Published February 04, 2025

American Manhunt: O.J. Simpson.

Courtesy Netflix

In the streaming revolution, the genre of true crime rules. Each month brings a flood of new, ripped-from-the-headlines docuseries, chronicling real-life murders, stranger-than-fiction cults and charlatans, and long-forgotten cold cases. We’ve all become armchair detectives obsessed with lurid misdeeds, tawdry scandals, and wrongful convictions. Here’s our rundown of the dozen current true crime shows most worth checking out now.

Sons of Ecstasy

A riveting behind-the-scenes account of how New York’s infamous Gravano crime family infiltrated the exploding ecstasy market in Arizona in the 1990s. The tale really gets interesting when these mobster outsiders start tangling with a rival named Shaun Attwood, an English stockbroker who became an unlikely — and dangerously stubborn — drug kingpin.

Where to watch: Max

An Update on Our Family

This three-part HBO docuseries explores the scary world of vlogging on YouTube and TikTok. Myka and James Stauffer adopted their autistic son Huxley from China. The Stauffers chronicled every step of their parenting journey on video and amassed a ton of followers, many of whom became deeply invested in this family’s story. So invested, in fact, that they began asking questions when the Stauffers stopped posting. What happened to Huxley? No spoilers here. You’ll have to tune in to find out.

Where to watch: Max

The Bunker

In case you were concerned that these true crime cases only happened in America, here’s one from Scandinavia. During her second date with a seemingly charming doctor, Isabel Eriksson was drugged and kidnapped. She woke up in a bunker that the doctor, Martin Trenneborg, had spent years building specifically to hold his female captives. In The Bunker, Isabel recounts her story and returns to the bunker (actually a re-creation built to the exact specifications of the cell that once held her) to reckon with her experience.

Where to watch: Prime Video (with Viaplay add-on)

Murder Under the Friday Night Lights: Season 4

Who knew there were so many dark chapters in the seemingly wholesome world of high school football? After three spellbinding seasons, Discovery+ returns with a new batch of tawdry true-crime tales, including the story of former New England Patriot-turned convicted murderer Aaron Hernandez. (The previous seasons of the series are also available on Hulu and are worth checking out as well. )

Where to watch: Discovery+

The Kings of Tupelo: A Southern Crime Saga

Think of this Mississippi-set tale as a cross between William Faulkner and Jerry Springer. Back in 2013, someone mailed President Obama a letter laced with poison. Investigators were quickly led to the door of a conspiracy theory-minded Elvis impersonator from Presley’s hometown, Tupelo. But that’s just one of the many colorful characters in this three-part series from the makers of Wild, Wild Country. Just wait until you get a load of the small-time karate instructor with national political aspirations, and the subplot about selling human organs on the black market. This is as bizarre as it gets.

Where to watch: Netflix

Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy

In this timely look back at the rise and fall of music mogul Sean Combs, 55, his former friends and current accusers allege abuse and sexual assault by the star, who’s currently in prison awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering. This is a chilling story about the power that can come with being a rich and famous celebrity.

Where to watch: Peacock

The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: The Final Chapter

True-crime pioneer Investigation Discovery brings you the strange saga of Natalia Grace, a Ukrainian girl born with a rare form of dwarfism. After being adopted by an American couple, Natalia was abandoned when her new parents claimed she was lying about her age and was, in fact, an adult pretending to be a minor. The Final Chapter recaps the story and brings us up to date on how this wild experience affected Natalia.

Where to watch: Max

American Manhunt: O.J. Simpson

Simpson has been a one-man true-crime cottage industry since the evening of June 12, 1994, when the bloody bodies of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were found outside of her Los Angeles home. Netflix has kept the details of this new four-episode docuseries under wraps. And while it’s hard to imagine what new details or insights the doc has up its sleeve, I’d be lying if I said I won’t be tuning in.

Where to watch: Netflix

Scamanda

This ABC docuseries adapted from a hit podcast unravels the strange story of Amanda Riley — a wife, mother, and devout Christian blogger who chronicled her battle with Stage 3 blood cancer. Which Riley never had, but she racked up more than $100,000 from friends and strangers who wanted to help. In her first 18 months in prison, she’s been rushed to the ER 24 times and was found to be tampering with her medical tests there.

Where to watch: ABC/Hulu

Apple Cider Vinegar (Feb. 6)

Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart) stars in this six-episode series about the rise of wellness culture, and the unregulated influencers who peddle hope to millions on social media in exchange for fame and followers. Loosely based on the real-life story of an Australian Instagram celebrity Belle Gibson, who claimed that she cured her own brain cancer using natural remedies, Apple Cider Vinegar reveals how she had never even been diagnosed with cancer.

Where to watch: Netflix

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Chris Nashawaty, former film critic for Entertainment Weekly, is the author of Caddyshack: The Making of a Hollywood Cinderella Story and a contributor to Esquire, Vanity Fair, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal.