TV Shows Inspired by True Crime: ‘The Thing About Pam,’ ‘The Act’ and More

Credit: Skip Bolen/NBC

TV Shows Inspired by True Crime: 'The Thing About Pam,' 'The Act' and More

Ripped from the headlines! True crime isn’t only a podcast phenomenon — many chilling stories have also been brought to life on the small screen. Renée Zellweger shocked viewers with her major transformation for her role as the title character in NBC’s The Thing About Pam, which premiered in March 2022. The series puts the criminal justice system under a microscope as police in suburban Missouri investigate the death of Betsy Faria (Katy Mixon). When asked what inspired her to sign on for the project, Zellweger told Harper’s Bazaar in her April 2022 cover story, “I wanted to do something that was lighter, which sounds absurd, because this is, you know, based on a horrific crime.” The Texas native was a fan of the Dateline podcast of the same name before teaming up with NBC and Blumhouse Television. “What makes Pam so fascinating is how benign she appeared,” Zellweger told the magazine. “Everybody feels like, ‘I know her. I know that lady.’ Someone who looks like your next-door neighbor or the lady who would babysit you turns out to make some choices that are, to put it kindly, illegal. This person was so outrageous, this sense of entitlement — I thought, ‘OK, as an actress, that’s fun.’” Along with the Oscar winner, the cast features an A-list lineup, from Josh Duhamel to Judy Greer. Following the series premiere, Greer opened up about the “heartbreaking” twists still to come throughout the season. “This is an absurd story and we are trying to highlight that and be very respectful to the families that lost their loved ones,” the 13 Going On 30 star told Entertainment Weekly in March 2022. “We see more things unfolding in the back three episodes that are unbelievable. People ask me, ‘What is it about true crime?’ I don't have an answer. I could also say, ‘Why do people slow down when there's a car accident?’ We just can't help ourselves. And this, to me, is one of the ultimate car accidents.” Before Zellweger’s devious turn, true crime fanatics watched infamous cases play out on FX’s American Crime Story. The franchise began in 2016 with The People v. OJ Simpson and continued with The Assassination of Gianni Versace two years later. Darren Criss played the antagonist on the 2018 season, which came as a big surprise to those who watched him sing and dance on Fox’s Glee. “People always ask me if it’s hard to live with a dark character and I say it’s no more difficult than living with the darkness in our world,” the Broadway performer told The Hollywood Reporter in November 2018. “I’m a happy-go-lucky person and I think that it’s because I embrace so much darkness and I embrace skepticism and negativity, and I’ve made my peace with it so I can be happy. In the same way that you can really embrace the dark, scary things about ourselves and with things about people like Andrew … you’re well aware of the fact that there is also light within this person and potential.” Scroll down to see more TV shows inspired by true crime: [podcast_block]

Credit: Skip Bolen/NBC

TV Shows Inspired by True Crime: 'The Thing About Pam,' 'The Act' and More

Ripped from the headlines! True crime isn’t only a podcast phenomenon — many chilling stories have also been brought to life on the small screen. Renée Zellweger shocked viewers with her major transformation for her role as the title character in NBC’s The Thing About Pam, which premiered in March 2022. The series puts the criminal justice system under a microscope as police in suburban Missouri investigate the death of Betsy Faria (Katy Mixon). When asked what inspired her to sign on for the project, Zellweger told Harper’s Bazaar in her April 2022 cover story, “I wanted to do something that was lighter, which sounds absurd, because this is, you know, based on a horrific crime.” The Texas native was a fan of the Dateline podcast of the same name before teaming up with NBC and Blumhouse Television. “What makes Pam so fascinating is how benign she appeared,” Zellweger told the magazine. “Everybody feels like, ‘I know her. I know that lady.’ Someone who looks like your next-door neighbor or the lady who would babysit you turns out to make some choices that are, to put it kindly, illegal. This person was so outrageous, this sense of entitlement — I thought, ‘OK, as an actress, that’s fun.’” Along with the Oscar winner, the cast features an A-list lineup, from Josh Duhamel to Judy Greer. Following the series premiere, Greer opened up about the “heartbreaking” twists still to come throughout the season. “This is an absurd story and we are trying to highlight that and be very respectful to the families that lost their loved ones,” the 13 Going On 30 star told Entertainment Weekly in March 2022. “We see more things unfolding in the back three episodes that are unbelievable. People ask me, ‘What is it about true crime?’ I don't have an answer. I could also say, ‘Why do people slow down when there's a car accident?’ We just can't help ourselves. And this, to me, is one of the ultimate car accidents.” Before Zellweger’s devious turn, true crime fanatics watched infamous cases play out on FX’s American Crime Story. The franchise began in 2016 with The People v. OJ Simpson and continued with The Assassination of Gianni Versace two years later. Darren Criss played the antagonist on the 2018 season, which came as a big surprise to those who watched him sing and dance on Fox’s Glee. “People always ask me if it’s hard to live with a dark character and I say it’s no more difficult than living with the darkness in our world,” the Broadway performer told The Hollywood Reporter in November 2018. “I’m a happy-go-lucky person and I think that it’s because I embrace so much darkness and I embrace skepticism and negativity, and I’ve made my peace with it so I can be happy. In the same way that you can really embrace the dark, scary things about ourselves and with things about people like Andrew … you’re well aware of the fact that there is also light within this person and potential.” Scroll down to see more TV shows inspired by true crime: [podcast_block]

Credit: Skip Bolen/NBC

'The Thing About Pam'

When Betsy Faria (Mixon) is found dead in her suburban Missouri home, police are quick to put the blame on her husband, Russ (Glenn Fleshler). However, the case is more complicated than meets the eye and high-powered lawyer Joel Schwartz (Duhamel) works hard to put an end to Russ’ wrongful conviction — and to find Pam (Zellweger) guilty. 

Credit: FX

'American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace'

Following the success of The People v. OJ Simpson, Ryan Murphy and FX teamed up for season 2, this time focusing on the death of designer Gianni Versace (Édgar Ramírez). The nine-episode anthology ran from January to March 2018, with Criss earning critical acclaim — and an Emmy Award — for his portrayal of killer Andrew Cunanan.

Credit: Courtesy Rotten Tomatoes TV/YouTube

'Dirty John'

Based on the podcast of the same name, the series originally aired on Bravo in 2018 and made its way to Netflix one year later. Season 1 starred Connie Britton as Debra Newell, a successful interior designer looking for love after four failed marriages. She falls for the mysterious John Meehan (Eric Bana) — and things soon get messy. The series later returned for a second season, Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story, starring Amanda Peet and Christian Slater.

Credit: Courtesy FX Networks/YouTube

'Under the Banner of Heaven'

Fans got their first look at the original Hulu drama in February 2022, two months before its premiere. Andrew Garfield stars as a Mormon detective who begins to question his faith while investigating the murder of a local woman. Daisy Edgar-Jones, Sam Worthington and Wyatt Russell round out the cast.

Credit: Courtesy BritBox/YouTube

'A Confession'

Detective Superintendent Steve Fulcher (Martin Freeman) is intent on finding 22-year-old Sian O'Callaghan (Florence Howard), who went missing in Swindon, England. His painstaking investigation leads him to suspect Christopher Halliwell (Joe Absolom) — and Fulcher is willing to do whatever it takes to get a confession.

Credit: Brownie Harris/Hulu

'The Act'

Hulu’s critically acclaimed series explored the story of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and the murder of her mother, Dee Dee Blanchard, who was accused of abusing her daughter through Munchausen by proxy. Patricia Arquette and Joey King starred as the mother-daughter duo alongside AnnaSophia Robb, Chloë Sevigny and Calum Worthy. King was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series at the 2019 Emmy Awards, while Arquette won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series at the same ceremony.

Credit: Scott McDermott/Peacock

'Dr. Death'

The Peacock miniseries took inspiration from the wildly popular podcast of the same name and followed neurosurgeon Christopher Duntsch (Joshua Jackson), who killed two of his patients and severely mutilated others.

Credit: Courtesy ONE Media/YouTube

'Escape at Dannemora'

Based on the real-life escape of prisoners from New York’s Clinton Correctional Facility in 2015, the series, directed by Ben Stiller, centers on the search for two convicted murderers (Paul Dano and Benicio del Toro). The pair escaped with the help of a prison employee (Arquette), who became romantically involved with both criminals.

Credit: Courtesy of Netflix

'Mindhunter'

Executive produced by Charlize Theron and David Fincher, the Netflix series was inspired by the 1995 true crime book Mindhunter: Inside the FBI's Elite Serial Crime Unit. Jonathan Groff starred as Holden Ford, a special agent in the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit who researches imprisoned serial killers to help get an understanding of their motives. 

Credit: Beth Dubber/Netflix

'Unbelievable'

Kaitlyn Dever, Merritt Wever and Toni Collette deliver powerful performances in this Netflix original series about a string of rapes in Washington and Colorado. Executive produced by Katie Couric, among others, the show was inspired by a 2015 news article titled "An Unbelievable Story of Rape" and the subsequent 2018 book A False Report.

Credit: Atsushi Nishijima/Netflix

'When They See Us'

Ava DuVernay directed the Netflix series based on the story of the Central Park Five, young Black men who were accused of — and later charged with — assaulting a jogger in New York City in 1989. The fivesome spent years fighting their convictions and ultimately settled their case in 2014.