Unbelievable (miniseries)


Unbelievable is an American crime drama miniseries starring Toni Collette, Merritt Wever, and Kaitlyn Dever. It follows a woman who was charged with a crime for reporting that she was raped, and two female detectives who investigate a spate of similar attacks. The show was co-created by Susannah Grant, Ayelet Waldman, and Michael Chabon. All three co-creators and Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly, and Katie Couric were executive producers. It was released on September 13, 2019, on Netflix.
The miniseries is based on the 2015 news article "An Unbelievable Story of Rape", written by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong about the Washington and Colorado [serial rape cases]. It also draws from their 2018 book A False Report, based on the same research. The series received critical acclaim and numerous accolades, including a Peabody Award and Best Limited Series nominations at the Critics' [Choice Television Award for Best Movie/Miniseries|Critics' Choice], Golden Globes and Primetime [Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series|Primetime Emmys]. All three lead actresses were nominated at the Critics' Choice Awards|Critics' Choice] and Golden Globe Awards. Collette also received nominations for the Primetime Emmy Award for [Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie|Primetime Emmy] and SAG Award.

Premise

Based on the 2008–2011 Washington and Colorado serial rape cases, Unbelievable follows Marie—a woman who was charged with a crime for reporting that she was raped—and two detectives trying to identify a serial rapist. The program draws from "An Unbelievable Story of Rape", a Pulitzer Prize–winning article by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong for ProPublica and The Marshall Project. It also draws from the related book A False Report, by the same authors.

Cast and characters

Main

Development

On January 22, 2018, Netflix ordered Unbelievable from Timberman/Beverly Productions and CBS Television Studios with executive producers including Susannah Grant, Michael Chabon, Ayelet Waldman, Sarah Timberman, Carl Beverly, and Katie Couric. The eight episode miniseries is based on an article by ProPublica and The Marshall Project, "An Unbelievable Story of Rape" written by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong about a case in Lynnwood, Washington. There was also a concurrently-published This American Life radio episode about the same case, "Anatomy of Doubt". Grant served as showrunner and also wrote for the series along with Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman.

Casting

In June 2018, Toni Collette, Merritt Wever, and Kaitlyn Dever were cast in the series' main roles. In July 2018, Danielle Macdonald joined the main cast, and in August 2018, Kai Lennox, Austin Hébert, Dale Dickey, Omar Maskati, Elizabeth Marvel, Liza Lapira, and Eric Lange were cast in recurring roles. In September 2018, Vanessa Bell Calloway joined the cast in a recurring capacity.

Episodes

Reception

Critical response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 98% based on 84 reviews, with an average rating of 8.7/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Heartbreaking and powerful, Unbelievable transcends familiar true-crime beats by shifting its gaze to survivors of abuse, telling their stories with grace and gravity." On Metacritic, it has a weighted average score of 83 out of 100, based on 25 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".

Audience viewership

On October 17, 2019, Netflix announced that the miniseries had been viewed by over 32 million viewers after its release on their platform.

Accolades