Netflix has made a name for itself as the go-to streaming service for true-crime documentary series. The streaming giant has released some big-name documentaries, covering everything from Sean Combs’ criminal trial and what led to it to stories about the Menendez Brothers and Amanda Knox. The streamer has also made household names out of people like Steven Avery in Making a Murderer and Joe Exotic in Tiger King. Another area that Netflix has explored is social media, with the biggest release to date being The Tinder Swindler. A new social media murder true crime series is challenging for that spot and is officially a major hit for Netflix.
Videos by ComicBook.com
The TikTok Killer hit Netflix last week, and it has already climbed to over four million views in its first week on the streamer, via Netflix. This is 600,000 more views than another true-crime series called A Friend, a Murderer: Limited Series. Not only that, but when the true crime documentary came out, The TikTok Killer ranked higher than every show on Netflix other than The Dinosaurs and Bridgerton.
The TikTok Killer Remains A Massive Hit for Netflix
Like many true crime documentaries on Netflix, it is the story behind the disappearance and the clues leading to the murderer that make this such a fascinating series and one that brings viewers back for more. In 2023, 42-year-old Ester Estepa disappeared in Spain. The authorities couldn’t figure out where she was, and her family started their own investigation. This led them to discover a travel blogger, José Jurado Montilla, who was traveling around Spain and had shot some videos showing him with Ester. While he says they went their separate ways, his own travel blog proved it was a lie, and the pieces fell into place.
This documentary brilliantly uses TikTok videos to show the audience how the family found out what happened to their beloved Ester, whose body was found dead in a remote area of the country. The trial is currently still ongoing, as is usually the case in new documentaries. However, José Jurado Montilla was caught and arrested twice on charges related to six murders. He was sentenced to 123 years in prison but got out in 28, and now he is on trial again, thanks to his TikTok account, leading to evidence surrounding Ester’s death.
Seeing the true crime documentary hit over four million views in one week is an impressive feat for anything on Netflix. The American Murder series was very popular, and almost nothing will touch iconic releases like Tiger King and Making a Murderer. However, with the popularity of TikTok among younger audiences and its role in possibly solving a murder in Spain, The TikTok Killer has become an instant hit, and there is no telling what its legacy will look like when all is said and done.
What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of The Pokemon Company -
Image Courtesy of DC Comics -
Image courtesy of XLGames -
Image courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures -
Image Courtesy of Crunchyroll
