Netflix picks up 10-part crime documentary

Netflix is betting that subscribers will be interested in a real-life crime investigation, ordering the 10-episode documentary series Making a Murderer. The series will be available starting Dec. 18, the streaming service announced Monday.

Murderer follows the story of Steven Avery, a Midwestern man convicted of a brutal assault, exonerated and released and later targeted as the suspect in a harrowing new crime.

Public interest in nonfiction crime stories is apparent from the popularity of the award-winning podcast Serial. A judge last week reopened the case at the center of Serial's first season.

Murderer directors Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos, inspired by a 2005 newspaper story, have spent the last decade exploring Avery's situation in a story that spans more than 30 years. After his exoneration, Avery filed suit and threatened to expose corruption in local law enforcement.

The directors look at allegations of police and prosecutorial misconduct, evidence tampering and witness coercion and question whether scientific advances and legislative reforms have made it easier to find the truth and achieve justice, the Netflix announcement says.

As part of the documentary, filmmakers follow the second criminal investigation and trial, with filmmakers petitioning the court at one point not to turn over their documentary footage. They also interview those closest to the case.

“There are an unbelievable number of twists and turns in the story arc of Making a Murderer, it feels like it has to be fictional,” says Netflix vice president Lisa Nishimura, who oversees documentary programming. “Ricciardi and Demos have navigated very complex terrain and skillfully woven together an incredible series that leaves you feeling like you’re right in the middle of the action.”

The Netflix announcement includes a statement from Ricciardi and Demos. “If we had not been there to witness these events we would have trouble believing they actually occurred. Our goal has always been to share that experience with viewers.  Our partnership with Netflix has allowed us to tell this story in a way that wouldn’t have been possible anywhere else.”