Not All of Netflix's True-Crime Shows Are Documentaries – Here Are the Best Dramas

Based on the true-crime podcast of the same name, Dirty John dives into its first season with the story of John Meehan (Eric Bana), a real con artist who preyed on Debra Newell (Connie Britton) and her family. John posed as a charming doctor until Newell’s daughter sensed something was wrong with her mother’s beau.

Watch Dirty John on Netflix.

Ava DuVernay‘s powerful When They See Us takes a closer look at the Central Park rape case that led to the wrongful convictions of five Black and brown teenage boys. The miniseries sheds light on how the convictions affected them and how the criminal justice system failed them.

Watch When They See Us on Netflix.

In the first installation of American Crime Story, Ryan Murphy dramatizes the infamous Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman murder cases that were sensationalized by the media because they centered on O.J. Simpson (Cuba Gooding Jr.). We also see the perspectives of prosecutors Marcia Clark (Sarah Paulson) and Christopher Darden (Sterling K. Brown).

Watch The People V. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story on Netflix.

The second season of American Crime Story features Glee‘s Darren Criss as Andrew Cunanan, the man who, on a killing spree, murdered fashion designer Gianni Versace (Edgar Ramirez). We get a closer look at Cunanan’s upbringing, as well as how the crime affected the Versace family.

Watch The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story on Netflix.

The character of Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling) on Orange Is the New Black is based on the book by Piper Kerman, who was indicted on charges of money laundering in 1998. OITNB is more about her prison life after the crimes, but it’s still a worthy watch that’s garnered many accolades throughout its run.

Watch Orange Is the New Black on Netflix.

Narcos follows the lives of the drug kingpins involved in the surge of the cocaine trade in the ’80s, particularly putting the spotlight on the exploits of Pablo Escobar (Wagner Moura) in its earlier seasons. The third season takes a look at what happened after Escobar’s fall.

Watch Narcos on Netflix.

It’s also worth watching the spinoff series, Narcos: Mexico, which features Diego Luna as drug lord Félix Gallardo. As the title suggests, this series is more focused on Mexico, not Colombia.

Watch Narcos: Mexico on Netflix.

The miniseries Wormwood unpacks the mysterious passing of biological-warfare scientist Frank Olson, whose death was officially ruled a suicide. However, investigations suggest there was a cover-up of his murder. Wormwood is technically intercut with documentary narration and footage, but it prioritizes reenactments with high production value and a stacked cast (which includes Peter Sarsgaard as Olson).

Watch Wormwood on Netflix.

Paul Bettany stars in Manhunt: Unabomber as Ted Kaczynski, aka the Unabomber. The series fictionalizes how the FBI tracked down Kaczynski as the public grew increasingly anxious, placing a heavy emphasis on forensic linguist Jim Fitzgerald’s role in the investigation.

Watch Manhunt: Unabomber on Netflix.

Based on the true stories of retired FBI agent John E. Douglas, Mindhunter stars Jonathan Groff as Holden Ford. Holden and his colleagues begin studying serial killers at the bureau, which brings them close to murderers such as Charles Manson and Edmund Kemper. The second season takes on the tragic case of the Atlanta child murders.

Watch Mindhunter on Netflix.

Based on a podcast episode of This American Life and a Pulitzer Prize-winning news story, Unbelievable follows Toni Collette and Merritt Wever as two police officers who uncover the link between a series of rape cases. Their investigation brings them to Marie (Kaitlyn Dever), a young woman accused of falsifying her rape case.

Watch Unbelievable on Netflix.

Netflix’s Alias Grace is based on novelist Margaret Atwood’s fictionalization of a true story. It follows the 1834 murders of Thomas Kinnear (Paul Gross) and his housekeeper Nancy Montgomery (Anna Paquin). Two servants, Grace Marks (Sarah Gadon) and James McDermott (Kerr Logan), were convicted of the killings.

Watch Alias Grace on Netflix.