JonBenét Ramsey Docs to Watch After Netflix Series Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey

Netflixs Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey? has brought the tragic murder of the 6-year-old beauty star to the forefront once again, almost 30 years after the events in December 1996.

For the past three decades, JonBenét Ramsey’s parents, Patsy and John, have been dragged through the mud of public opinion, with countless people holding them responsible for the death of their daughter, who was found strangled in the basement of their home.

The documentary’s director, Joe Berlinger, narrated The Hollywood Reporter that he feels that true crime shows and films often try to present both sides of a case, but his three-part documentaries do not. Instead, Boulder police are pointed to as the reason the case remains unsolved 28 years after JonBenét’s murder.

When asked why he wanted to take on the case, the Oscar-nominated and prolific filmmaker said he felt like he could actually make a difference with new information that would hopefully put pressure on Boulder police to reveal DNA found at the crime scene to investigate with the advanced technology they have today and help clear the name of the Ramsey family.

“I think we can solve the case. I want to give this family some measure of justice,” he said. “There are some basic things that Boulder police need to do. For some reason, even with a new police chief, even with most of the old players gone and some of them reprimanded, there was still a certain institutional intransigence to actually do the right thing.”

While Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey? is the latest project dealing with the tragic case. Numerous documentaries and films have been made over the years, each attempting to bring a new perspective to the story. And that includes the upcoming Paramount+ limited series starring Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen as her parents Patsy and John Ramsey.

“Getting Away with Murder: The JonBenét Ramsey Mystery”

Image source: Franklin Media/Courtesy Everett Collection

Published four years after JonBenét’s death, Getting Away with Murder: The JonBenet Ramsey Mystery sees a reporter travel to Boulder, Colorado to write a story about the murder. While there, she receives conflicting stories about who killed the six-year-old beauty star, as some investigators suspected the parents and others suspected one of three men who had a connection to the family. The hour-long Foc documentary was produced by American television production company Rocket Science Laboratories and directed by Edward Lucas.

Getting Away with Murder: The JonBenet Ramsey Mystery is no longer available on television, but can be seen on YouTube.
“Perfect Murder, Perfect City: JonBenét and the City of Boulder”

Image source: TVM Prod./Courtesy Everett Collection

Perfect murder, perfect city was also released in 2000. The CBS miniseries, based on director Lawrence Schiller’s book of the same name, features historical news and talk show footage and covers in detail the alleged botched investigation into the beauty star’s murder. The show, which aired from 2000 to 2001, highlights how the hysterical media coverage surrounding JonBenét’s murder made the investigation even more difficult. Kris Kristofferson, Marg Helgenberger, Ronny Cox and Dyanne Iandoli starred in the project.

Watch on YouTube.
“True Crime with Aphrodite Jones”

Image source: Discovery Channel/Courtesy Everett Collection

True Crime with Aphrodite Jones explored JonBenét’s case in the first episode of season two, “JonBenét Ramsey: The Innocent.” In the 2011 documentary episode, the presenter sought answers to the case, which raised many questions when it occurred. In each of her episodes, the presenter brought new information about the case, whether through interviews with people who had never spoken before or through evidence or images that shed light on the cases.

True Crime with Aphrodite Jones can be streamed on Investigation Discovery and Discovery+, among others.
“The Case of: JonBenét Ramsey”

CBS was one of the many networks that aired a documentary or film about JonBenét in 2016 to mark the 20th anniversary of the six-year-old’s death. During the six-part series, the investigative team reviewed the cast, the 911 call, the ransom note and other aspects of the cast in rooms they recreated from the Ramsey house. The docuseries primarily pointed to Burke, JonBenét’s then eight-year-old brother, as the person who killed her because she ate some of his snack. He sued CBS for $750 million for defamation, and the case was settled years later for an undisclosed amount of money.

View on Amazon.
“Who killed JonBenét?”

Photo credit: Dean Buscher/Lifetime/Courtesy Everett Collection

Lifetime addressed the story of JonBenét’s murder with an original film that revisits the tragedy and the details that captured the nation’s attention at the time. The film offers an insight into the events of December 26, 1996, when the festival star was found beaten and strangled in his family’s basement. Who killed JonBenét? took a fresh look at the events and the competing theories about what happened that day.

View on Amazon.
“The Assassination of JonBenét: The Truth Revealed”

A&E released the first document in 2016 to mark the 20th anniversary of JonBenét’s tragic death. The channel’s documentary contained five key revelations in the cold case. First, someone could have gotten into the Ramsey home through a basement window. Second, several pieces of “information” leaked during the course of the case were likely false. Third, Boulder police allegedly withheld DNA that could have eliminated JonBenét’s parents as suspects. Fourth, Burke Ramsey, her brother, heard everything that happened in the house that night. Fifth, there were marks on the beauty star’s face and back that indicated possible interaction with a stun gun.

Watch for free on Amazon.
“Casting for JonBenet”

Image source: Netflix/Courtesy Everett Collection

In 2017, Netflix jumped on the JonBenét bandwagon with a documentary in which local actors from the Colorado area offered multiple perspectives on the 1996 murder while vying for roles in a dramatized version of the case, according to the streamer. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival that same year. Unlike other projects on this case, this one focuses on how the events became a pop culture obsession and conspiracy.

Watch on Netflix.
“JonBenét Ramsey”

Image source: Dia Dipasupil/Getty; Michael Tullberg/Getty

Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen will direct Paramount+’s upcoming limited series, currently titled Jon Benét Ramsey. The Oscar nominees will portray the six-year-old’s parents, Patsy and John Ramsey. The project will follow the family before and after the tragic murder “as they endure the painful loss of a child while facing intense public scrutiny caused by a media frenzy that led to this case captivating an entire nation in its wake.” cast a spell,” the show’s description says. “At the heart of the series is the story of Patsy and John Ramsey, which explores the unbreakable partnership of these two complex people – as husband and wife, as mother and father – who are committed to developing the narrative of a perfect one for themselves and their children , privileged life that was shattered one Christmas night in 1996.”

A release date has not been announced yet, but the show will stream on Paramount+.