Jeffrey Dahmer Netflix show

The Jeffrey Dahmer Story — that’s the title of the Netflix series that takes a deep dive into the life of the infamous serial killer, exploring what might have driven a seemingly ordinary young man to become one of the most notorious and brutal murderers in U.S. history.

The show retraces his troubled teenage years: an absent father, a mother battling addiction, and a disturbing hobby his father introduced him to—taxidermy, dissecting dead animals.

After years of struggling with alcoholism, Dahmer served in the army but was honorably discharged because of his drinking. Later, while working as a phlebotomist, he was caught stealing bags of blood… and drinking them.

He went on to kill 17 people, attempting to create a “zombie army” by drilling holes into his victims’ skulls and experimenting with various acids. Eventually, Dahmer was arrested and tried to claim insanity in his defense. He was sentenced to 15 consecutive life terms. In prison, he was murdered by another inmate. His body was cremated, though his brain was preserved for scientific study.

The series became an instant hit, climbing to the number-one spot on Netflix during its first week. By its second week, Netflix announced that Dahmer had become its ninth most popular English-language show of all time, with 56 million households watching all 10 episodes. It stayed at number one for weeks, ultimately becoming the second most-watched English-language series in Netflix history, and the fourth overall, with over 701 million viewing hours in just 21 days. In its first 28 days, the series racked up more than 865 million hours viewed.

On December 6, 2022, it won the People’s Choice Award for “The Bingeworthy Show of 2022.”

But not everyone was impressed. The season drew sharp criticism from the families of Dahmer’s victims, who accused Netflix of exploiting their trauma and “retraumatizing families again and again.” Eric Perry, a relative of victim Errol Lindsey, put it bluntly: “I want people to understand this isn’t just a story or a piece of history. These were real people’s lives. Lindsey was someone’s son, someone’s brother, someone’s father, someone’s friend—he was ripped from our lives.”

So, what do you think of the series? Are you for or against shows like this?

As for me, I think it’s important to tell these kinds of stories to raise awareness about the reality of serial killers. But at the same time, I completely understand the pain of the victims’ families—having to relive that trauma over and over, and seeing it broadcast on TV, must be absolutely devastating.