I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t stop watching Netflix’s true crime doc The Tinder Swindler, which was released on Feb. 2.
The documentary follows three women who were defrauded by Simon Leviev, a 31-year-old international fraudster who has been conning people out of money since his late teens.
Anyway, if you’re interested, I have some recommendations for more true crime/scammer content. There’s lots out there.
For starters, there’s Inventing Anna, out on Feb. 11 on Netflix.
FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened (Netflix) or Fyre Fraud (Hulu)
The Dropout, out March 3 on Hulu
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Based on the ABC Audio podcast of the same name, the Hulu miniseries The Dropout is about the rise and fall of Elizabeth Holmes and her now-defunct health-technology company, Theranos. Starring Amanda Seyfried as Holmes, The Dropout’s first three episodes will premiere on March 3.
The real Holmes was found guilty of defrauding investors, and she currently faces up to 20 years in prison.
Dirty John (the LA Times podcast and the Netflix/Bravo show)
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Launched in 2017, the podcast Dirty John told the true story of con artist John Meehan, who started up a relationship with a wealthy Newport Beach businesswoman named Debra Newell. Meehan claimed to be a doctor, but in actuality he is an out-of-work anesthesiologist with a drug addiction and background littered with lawsuits and stories of abuse. The podcast was later adapted into a televised drama starring Eric Bana and Connie Britton.
Dr. Death, Season 3 (Podcast)
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Produced by Wondery, Dr. Death‘s latest podcast chapter tells the story of an Italian surgeon named Paolo Macchiarini, who performed experimental surgeries on his patients without their consent.
Made You Look: A True Story About Fake Art (Netflix)
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This 2020 Netflix documentary directed by Barry Avrich tells the story of the most successful forgery scam in high-end art history. It follows disgraced gallery director Ann Freedman, who took the fall for a series of Rothko, Kooning, and Pollock forgeries that come through New York City’s once-prestigious Knoedler gallery.
Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018)
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Starring Melissa McCarthy, this 2018 drama film is based on the 2008 confessional memoir of Lee Israel, a real writer who, in the 1990s, forged letters from deceased authors and playwrights.
Duped: Double Lives, False Identities, and the Con Man I Almost Married by Abby Ellin (2019)
