It caused a lot of trouble around the serial killer series “Dahmer”: several victims (or relatives of theirs) were angry that Netflix had adapted the true story as it is told in the series, which had become a huge success – and most importantly, never spoke to the victims. They found out – at the same time as the general public – via the internet, through trailers or maybe even just through the Netflix application on their own TV that a new “Dahmer” series was coming out.
With “The Watcher” it is different. The real victims of this story were not only informed by those responsible for the series, but could even influence it (to a small extent). This also made some changes in the story. By the way, we have written down the true story and background for you here:
Anyone who now believes that series creator Ryan Murphy, who is behind both “Dahmer” and “The Watcher,” and his client learned Netflix is wrong. Of course, with “The Watcher” you couldn’t directly respond to the criticism of “Dahmer”. After all, the series had been delayed for a long time and only appeared shortly afterwards.
It’s probably not that Murphy and his team were particularly attentive. no Because while the case of Jeffrey Dahmer, who murdered between 1978 and 1991, is now well documented, the story of a mysterious stalker who terrorized a family in 2014, hoping for some useful information and insight. So it was actually logical that people wanted to talk to the victims for “The Watcher”.
The insights that the real victims gave to the magazine also show that thinking may not have been the priority around talks for the Netflix series starring Naomi Watts and Bobby Cannavale. Because it becomes clear that they saw the opportunity to gain at least a little control by selling their rights. Otherwise, there would have been a risk that Netflix and Murphy would do the series without her (as the American TV channel Lifetime did with a TV movie in 2016). Ergo: The series would probably have come one way or another.
We also don’t think the changes are just for consideration. At the request of the real victims, their names were changed in the film, along with the number of children in the family. So the identification is gone. But of course these are minor changes, which the creators around Murphy can certainly quickly agree to, as they play no part in the story. With one more major change, however, they stray far from the true story.
The real victims never came to live in the house, but because of the Guardian’s terror, they renounced it. It’s different in the series. But that certainly does not serve to change the story and to protect the real victims from re-traumatization. It’s just much more exciting, much more dramatic, when the family and children in the house are terrorized by the mysterious Watcher.
“the viewer” is therefore significantly better at dealing with victims than “dahmer“much praise should be had” Ryan Murphy and co. don’t give up on it. Ultimately, it remains true that true crime material always carries the danger of the real victims reliving the old trauma. So is the real couple behind the events of The Watcher You definitely don’t want to watch the series. Just watching the trailer was “stressful enough”.