The true crime genre is your best bet if you’re looking for a scary movie but can’t find one. There’s reasonable justification for the genre’s consistent popularity. There is no shortage of true crime shows that would make for an entertaining and horrific binge, from conjuring up white-collar crimes to killings motivated solely by fandom.

If you’re looking for something new to watch that will leave you feeling a little uneasy in the gut, we recommend any of these excellent actual crime shows.

Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story

One of the most notorious serial killers in America, Jeffrey Dahmer, killed 17 men and adolescent boys between 1987 and 1991. According to ExpressVPN’s blog piece, the show, which explores his motives, rose to the number-one spot on Netflix in the first week of its release, with 56 million households having viewed all ten episodes.

Worst Roommate Ever

All of us have undoubtedly experienced living with a less-than-ideal roommate at some point. It’s not always pleasant sharing a home with another person, especially if they’ve been a nuisance, stole from your fridge, or were late with their rent payment. Some of the roommate conflicts explored in this series ended in murder, making for a disturbing and frightening watch.

Killer Sally

Killer Sally is a three-part, gloomy documentary that enables McNeil, her kids, and acquaintances to spend hours discussing the grim reality of spousal violence through reminiscence and revelation. Killer Sally details the tumultuous courtship between the bodybuilding pros and dissects the facts of their time together and the outmoded legal system’s handling of McNeil’s tragic story from the moment they met until their marriage. The narrative in Killer Sally is both sad and weird, shedding new insight into a cold case.

The Thing About Pam

As soon as Betsy Faria is found dead, the police assume her husband is the prime suspect in the case. However, that changes after they begin questioning Betsy’s great friend, Pam Hupp. She is the only witness to her disappearance, and her story is full of disturbing turns.

Candy

The Hulu series Candy is one of many on this list based on an actual murder case. Candy Montgomery, portrayed by Jessica Biel, is suspected of assassinating Betty Gore (Melanie Lynskey) by hitting her 41 times in the head with an axe.

Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist

This film rocketed to the top of Netflix’s list shortly after its August 2022 debut and stayed there for a good while. This two-part documentary provides new insight into one of the most talked-about sports scandals of the previous decade: the sham relationship between Manti Te’o and a former girlfriend. This film has a plot twist in that Teo’s supposed girlfriend is dead and not actual.

Unsolved Mysteries

This is an original format in the genre of true crime. The show’s popularity stemmed from its blend of supernatural and forensic mystery. While Robert Stack narrated each episode in the previous seasons, the new reboot eliminates much of the narrative structure, replacing it with more documentary-style stand-alone episodes.

The programs investigate not only serial killers but also cold cases that have gone unresolved for decades. The series’s success sparked a new interest in solving complex cases. If you need more time or patience to watch a lengthy documentary, this is the one for you.

The Ripper

This is primarily about a serial killer who preyed on women in West Yorkshire and Manchester in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The case is horrifying, as one might anticipate, but what makes The Ripper so interesting is how it examines and critiques the authorities and public responses to the crime.

Though the documentary series does reveal the killer’s identity, its primary focus is on the public’s response to the York Ripper murders and the culture that emerged at the time.

This British real crime documentary will make you outraged at the world and want to see more, but it’s well worth your time.

Conclusion

Humans are captivated by true crime stories, and we find it hard to believe that another human can commit such heinous deeds.