We may earn a commission from links on this page.
I’m not sure what it says about us that we can’t get enough of Ed Gein, of all people. While lacking the type of body count that would put him among American’s most prolific serial murderers, his penchant for crafting housewares from human skin has more than earned him a spot in that dark pantheon. Beyond his appeal to true crime enthusiasts, his deeds have generated multiple major media franchises: nine Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies at last count, as well as several films and a TV show based on Robert Bloch’s Psycho series of novels—all of them loosely, but definitely, based on Gein.
All that’s before we get into the documentaries and docudramas, of which the current season of Monster is the latest. It’s another monster (ahem) hit for Netflix, so you might want to dive deeper into the darkness once you’re done. Here are some true (and some less-true) crime dramas that might fill in for Gein before he makes his inevitable return to the screen.
Bates Motel (2013 – 2017)
A bit of tonal whiplash to be had here, perhaps, after watching Monster, but Bates Motel represents a deeper dive into the Ed Gein cinematic universe. Freddie Highmore stars here as Norman Bates, the Robert Bloch character based on Gein, with Vera Farmiga as Norma (aka Mother!) in her pre-dessicated-corpse days. Like a lot of media spun-off from Alfred Hitchcock’s seminal Psycho, it’s better than it has any right to be, with impressively compelling character development and several surprises, even if we already know more-or-less where it’s all heading. Stream Bates Motel on Prime Video.
Mindhunter (2017 – 2019)
Set during the early days of criminal psychology and profiling as FBI disciplines (the series begins in 1977), Mindhunter fictionalizes the work of the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit, with special agents Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) and Bill Tench (Holt McCallany), alongside psychology professor Wendy Carr (Anna Torv) traveling to prisons across the United States, hoping to catch killers and anticipate future crimes by studying serial killers the likes of Charles Manson, Edmund Kemper, and Jerry Brudos. Think Silence of the Lambs, but with (mostly) real-life killers. Stream Mindhunter on Netflix.
Hannibal (2013 – 2015)
Here we have the debonair counterpart to Ed Gein’s working-class charm. By 2013, it really felt as though we’d seen more than enough of Hannibal Lecter and co., a series of Silence of the Lambs spin-offs and sequels having become increasingly tiresome. Still, producer Bryan Fuller went back to the source material here, once again adapting Thomas Harris’s first Lecter novel with grand, operatic style and a visual flair unmatched on network television (you’re still unlikely to find more gorgeously constructed scenes of carnage). What’s more, the deeper, sexier relationship between the good Doctor (Mads Mikkelsen) and profiler Will Graham (Hugh Dancy) adds some brilliant subtext as the two work together to hunt serial killers. It ended a bit too early, but the three seasons still make for a satisfying meal. Stream Hannibal on Prime Video.
The Outsider (2020)
Fictional monsters, no matter how vile, never creep me out quite as much as the real thing. This supernatural-tinged Stephen King adaptation is a bit less disturbing than the Gein story—but it’s still very, very disturbing. The set-up is brutal, and impossible: A kid is horrifically (like: horrifically) murdered, and the evidence decisively points to Little League coach Terry Maitland (Jason Bateman). It’s an open-and-shut case—except that he was out of town at a conference while the murder was occurring, and even appeared on the news in another town. It’s engaging enough to get past the initial distaste, but The Outsider does not mess around. There are great performances here from Bateman, as well as from Ben Mendelsohn and Cynthia Erivo as Holly Gibney, one of King’s recurring characters. Stream The Outsider on HBO Max or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.
Dexter (2006 – 2013)
The show that dares to ask: what if a serial killer were kind of a nice guy who mostly wants to be helpful? Michael C. Hall stars as Dexter Morgan, a Miami-based forensic technician with bloody, murderous impulses. Fortunately (usually), he’s learned to focus those impulses on dismembering baddies rather than the more sympathetic innocents who typically wind up in the crosshairs of this type of killer. So lovable is our Dexter that he lead eight seasons of this show, popping up again in three spin-offs, including the current Dexter: Resurrection. Stream Dexter on Paramount+.
The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (2018)
An earlier Ryan Murphy true crime epic, this one stars Darren Criss as sociopath and serial killer Andrew Cunanan, whose last victim was legendary fashion designer Gianni Versace (Edgar Ramirez). With an emphasis on the sun-soaked sex and party life of Miami Beach in the 1990s, Murphy here pioneered his signature style: polish, heightened drama, and a focus on the killer that borders on the sympathetic. Stream The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story (Season Two) on Hulu.
Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (2022)
Created by Ian Brennan and the ubiquitous Ryan Murphy, the creator’s justifiably controversial docudrama was, immediately following its premiere, Netflix’s second highest-viewed show in English ever. Given Murphy’s track record, it’s not entirely surprising that the show was a success, but I’m not sure that anyone could have predicted that the awkwardly titled serial killer story would be such a towering hit. Though it makes an effort to tease out the social inequalities that Dahmer was able to exploit to continue finding victims even as neighbors and community members voiced suspicions about his behavior, Ryan’s heightened style and fascination with the killer himself raised questions about the line between entertainment and exploitation. Still, can’t argue with the show’s success. Stream Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story on Netflix.
Candy (2022)
The real-life Candy Montgomery has been portrayed by Barbara Hershey, Jessica Biel in this Hulu miniseries and, just a year later, by Elizabeth Olsen over on HBO Max. Jessica Biel is so good here, though, that this one earns extra points. In 1980, Candy was accused of murdering her neighbor, Betty Gore (Melanie Lynskey), following the woman’s affair with Candy’s husband, Allan (Pablo Schreiber). And with an axe, no less. Was it cold-blooded murder, or self-defense? Stream Candy on Hulu.
What do you think so far?
Mr. Mercedes (2017 – 2019)
This series adapts a trilogy of Stephen King crime novels and kicks off with an appropriately horrifying scene of vehicular manslaughter, during which the driver of a stolen Mercedes kills 16 by plowing through a crowd of people at a job fair. Retired detective Bill Hodges (Brendan Gleeson) becomes obsessed with the case, drawing him into the orbit of a rather brilliant young psychopath (Harry Treadaway). Justine Lupe plays King regular Holly Gibney, who’d later be played by Cynthia Erivo in The Outsider. Stream Mr. Mercedes on Peacock.
The Staircase (2022)
Inspired by a documentary of the same name, The Staircase sidesteps true crime tropes by taking a nearly meta approach. Colin Firth stars as real-life crime novelist Michael Peterson alongside Toni Collette as his wife and, perhaps victim, Kathleen, who died following a fall down a fight of stairs. Peterson was convicted of murder, later reduced to voluntary manslaughter, and there remain a lot of questions about the case, so the drama focuses on many of the tangential players: lawyers, family members, and the French film crew that turns up to document everything, offering a glimpse of life inside the orbit of such a drama. Stream The Staircase on HBO Max or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.
A Friend of the Family (2022)
Here we have a disturbing true-crime drama that’s entirely devoid of murder, yet still manages to be chilling. Jake Lacy plays Robert Berchtold, who kidnapped and sexually abused Jan Broberg (Mckenna Grace) twice over a period of two years. That nightmare unfolds as Berchtold ingratiates himself within 12-year-old Broberg’s family, winning over both parents (including through sexual encounters) while grooming Jan before abducting her, only to repeat the horrific crimes again after she’d been returned. Lacy (The White Lotus) is all charm here, making it all the more horrifying for us, as viewers, while we know what this family doesn’t. Stream A Friend of the Family on Peacock.
Psycho: The Lost Tapes of Ed Gein (2023)
A four-part documentary series that revisits the crimes and horrors of Ed Gein—buoyed by the addition of Gein himself in audio recordings unearthed in 2019, and conducted by a police detective in the 1950s. There’s probably not much new in the documentary for Ed Gein aficionados, but there’s no question that hearing Gein talk about his own crimes, not long after they’d occurred, is bone chilling. Stream Psycho: The Lost Tapes of Ed Gein on MGM+.
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019)
A made-for-streaming movie rather than a series, strictly speaking, Joe Berlinger’s Netflix original about the life of serial killer Ted Bundy deserves a mention here, in part because Bundy is right up there with Gein in the extremely grim pantheon of American serial killers—but also because of its casting, which sees a likable and conventionally attractive Zac Efron in the title role. The film follows Bundy from his law student days in Seattle of the late 1960s to (spoiler?) his 1989 execution. Efron is great, as is Lily Collins as Liz Kendall, the girlfriend who maintained Bundy’s innocence until that became impossible. Stream Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile on Netflix.
