After a year in Hollywood largely defined by two massive strikes, the start of a new year makes way for exciting, upcoming series for audiences. The Hollywood Reporter rounded up some of the most anticipated series based on true stories (loosely, or otherwise) premiering in 2024 across streamers and cable networks that will feed into America’s seemingly insatiable desire for more content rooted in reality.
A journalist who turned on his friends for fame and never truly recovered. Two iconic figures in American history who were often pitted against each other, despite fighting for the same thing. A French designer who helped launch modern fashion against the backdrop of Nazi-occupied Paris. Two brothers who killed their parents after years of alleged abuse and were sentenced to life in prison without parole.
There are different reasons audiences may be drawn to series based on true stories. The genre could satisfy their curiosity about the world. Maybe it transports them into someone else’s day-to-day and helps them forget about their own. Perhaps it has nothing to do with the escapism, and everything to do with simply finding the narrative formula comforting.
Regardless of what attracts viewers to these stories, they almost always garner a massive following and become ingrained in every aspect of pop culture, from social media to nightly news.
And while some people prefer true-crime scripted series like Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and Under the Banner of Heaven, not all shows based on real life have to be dark.
Below, find a list of 10 picks premiering this year, from Feud: Capote vs. the Swans to Genius MLK/X.
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‘Feud: Capote vs. the Swans’
Image Credit: Pari Dukovic/FX The second installment of Ryan Murphy’s Feud anthology is based on Laurence Leamer’s best-selling book, Capote’s Women: A True Story of Love, Betrayal, and a Swan Song for an Era. It follows Truman Capote (Tom Hollander), who ingratiated himself into the lives of some of society’s most elite women he nicknamed “the swans,” only to betray them by writing a fictionalized version of their lives. According to FX, when an excerpt of the book was published, “it effectively destroyed his relationship with his swans, banished him from the high society he so loved and sent him into a spiral of self-destruction from which he would ultimately never recover.”
The group of women is made up of Barbara “Babe” Paley (Naomi Watts), Slim Keith (Diane Lane), C.Z. Guest (Chloë Sevigny) and Lee Radziwill (Calista Flockhart). Demi Moore’s Ann “Bang-Bang” Woodward, Molly Ringwald’s Joanne Carson, the late Treat Williams’ Bill Paley, Joe Mantello’s Jack Dunphy and Russell Tovey’s John O’Shea round out the ensemble.
Feud: Capote vs. the Swans premieres on FX on Jan. 31 and will be available to stream on Hulu the following day.
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‘Genius: MLK/X’
Image Credit: National Geographic/Richard DuCree Genius: MLK/X follows Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (Kelvin Harrison Jr.) and Malcolm X (Aaron Pierre) during their formative years, as they were molded by the people around them and the injustices they faced. The docu-drama series also shines a light on their rich, parallel stories as they shaped their individual identities and offers an intimate look at their lives as husbands, fathers, brothers and sons, according to National Geographic.
The series also brings their respective wives, Coretta Scott King (Weruche Opia) and Betty Shabazz (Jayme Lawson), to the forefront and shows how they had their own parts in the Civil Rights Movement, despite often being shown as peripheral figures. The eight-episode installment of Genius will detail the moments between the historical events and how those leaders and their immediate circle navigated their public persona and private life.
Genius: MLK/X premieres on National Geographic Feb. 1, with subsequent episodes dropping every Thursday. All episodes will stream on Disney+ and Hulu Fridays.
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‘Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story’
Image Credit: Ted Soqui/Sygma/Getty Images The second installment of Ryan Murphy’s Monster anthology series follows the real-life, high-profile case of Lyle and Erik Menendez, two brothers who killed their parents in 1989, and the events surrounding the murders. During their trials, the men cited years of abuse as the reason why they shot them in their Beverly Hills home, but prosecutors argued they did it to try to gain the family fortune.
Newcomers Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch portray brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez, while Javier Bardem and Chloë Sevigny star as their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. Nathan Lane takes on the role of investigative journalist Dominick Dunne. Alexis Martin Woodall, Eric Kovtun, David McMillan, Louise Shore and Carl Franklin serve as executive producers alongside Murphy and Ian Brennan.
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story doesn’t have an airdate yet but should hit Netflix later in 2024.
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‘Manhunt’
Image Credit: Apple TV+ This seven-part true crime limited series stars Emmy-winning actor Tobias Menzies, who portrays Edwin Stanton in Monica Beletsky’s project based on the best-selling nonfiction book of the same name. The story details the conspiracy thriller about the hunt for John Wilkes Booth in the aftermath of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Anthony Boyle, Lovie Simone, Will Harrison, Brandon Flynn, Damian O’Hare, Glenn Morshower, Patton Oswalt, Matt Walsh and Hamish Linklater round out the cast.
The first two episodes of Manhunt air March 15 on AppleTV+, with subsequent episodes debuting weekly on Fridays until the final one drops on April 19.
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‘The New Look’
Image Credit: Apple TV+ The New Look is inspired by true events and centers on fashion designers Christian Dior (Ben Mendelsohn), Coco Chanel (Juliette Binoche) and their contemporaries “as they navigated the horrors of World War II and launched modern fashion,” per AppleTV+. The series takes place in Nazi-occupied Paris and focuses on the moment in history when the French city led the world back to life through icon Dior. It provides a look into the atelier, designs and clothing created by Dior through his collaboration with the fashion house. Maisie Williams, John Malkovich, Emily Mortimer and Claes Bang as Spatz also star.
The first three episodes of The New Look will debut on AppleTV+ on Feb. 14, followed by one episode every Wednesday until April 3.
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‘Daughters of the Cult’
Image Credit: ABC News Studios This unscripted docuseries takes a deep dive into the history of Ervil LeBaron’s polygamous cult, told by people who were there. The cult was hidden throughout the Southwest United States and Mexico and consisted of a group of Mormon fundamentalists, who were responsible for a deadly wave of violence and abuse across decades in the name of their prophet dubbed the “Mormon Manson.” The five-episode series features interviews with survivors, relatives of the killers and law enforcement officials, including the brave few women who were able to escape and begin their lives again.
All episodes of Daughters of the Cult are on Hulu now.
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‘Mary & George’
Image Credit: Starz Mary & George follows the story of the Countess of Buckingham, portrayed by Julianne Moore, who molded her son, George (Nicholas Galitzine), to seduce King James I (Tony Curran) and become his all-powerful lover. The two eventually grew richer and more influential than anyone else in England at the time. The historical psychodrama was created by Killing Eve writer D.C. Moore. The Starz series is adapted from Benjamin Woolley’s nonfiction book, The King’s Assassin.
Mary & George is set to premiere in the spring of 2024. No official date has been set yet.
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‘Crime Nation’
Image Credit: Noam Galai/Getty Images The CW’s Crime Nation will dive into recent high-profile cases like the Delphi murders, the Lori Vallow Daybell case and the Gilgo Beach murders, among others. Each of the 10, two-hour episodes will provide new details on each case, with expert analysis, new reporting and previously unaired interviews. The network’s first-ever true crime series will also take a look at the world of “social media by talking to crime enthusiasts, social media sleuths, podcasters and digital detectives, who in some instances have used their network to help solve cases,” according to the CW.
Crime Nation airs Feb. 20.
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‘Me, Hereafter’
Image Credit: Courtesy of ABC News Studios According to Hulu, Me, Hereafter is a true-crime series told from the murder victims’ point of view. The docu-drama series features never-before-seen footage, dramatic scenes and interviews with those closest to the victims. Each episode guides viewers to the truth through the voices of the ones who were murdered, with clues, alibis, motives and misdirects keeping people guessing.
All episodes drop on Hulu Feb. 29.
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‘Death in the Dorms’
Image Credit: Courtesy of ABC News Studios Season two of the ABC News series Death in the Dorms details six new true-crime stories at six different college campuses across the U.S. The logline reads, “The kind of danger that no college student is ever prepared for: a life cut short just when it was getting started, not by accident but by foul play; each procedural episode will examine a different murder of a college student in the U.S.” The season will feature stories from students at Jackson State University, Louisiana State University, University of Miami, Temple University, Binghamton University and College of Charleston. Each episode focuses on the students who were killed through their loved ones’ grief and the fight to bring the murderers to justice.
Death in the Dorms season two drops on Hulu and Disney+ Feb. 22.
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