It appears that people (and Hollywood execs?) can”t get enough of true crime.
Coming on the heels of the success of the FX series, American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson and hours after NBC announced their plans for a dramatization of the Menendez brothers trial, it looks like CBS is ready to explore the JonBenet Ramsey case.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, CBS is partnering up with Emmy-winning producer Tom Forman (Extreme Makeover: Home Edition) to create the unscripted series that will re-investigate the unsolved case. It was in December 1996 that the child beauty pageant winner was found murdered in her parents” basement. While her parents, John and Patricia Ramsey, were considered suspects, no charges were ever filed. In 2006, a 41-year-old school teacher named John Mark Karr was arrested after he admitted to the killing, but it turned out to be a false confession.
True crime TV has been a ratings bonanza. People v. O.J. averaged 7.7 million viewers per episode, and the Netflix series Making a Murderer has already been seen by more than 19 million people, this according to Symphony Advanced Media.
The as-of-yet untitled series could debut as soon as this fall.