From Tiger King to Cheer: 6 Netflix documentaries to binge-watch right now

From the loves and losses of gun-toting animal rights villain Joe Exotic to the progressive summer camp that forged a new civil rights movement, these are six of the best Netflix documentaries to stream now.
Tiger King
Tiger KingCourtesy Netflix

Netflix is never short on reality programming guaranteed to set social media alight. But the online response to Tiger King — the documentary series starring the now-jailed gun-toting, mullet-wearing big cat enthusiast-cum-politician, Joe Exotic — has been seismic, even by Twitter standards. I’m still thinking about the meme currently circulating on Instagram for those (everyone) obsessed with Exotic’s flamboyant wardrobe.

While the seven-part series is no quick binge, those seeking more can’t-look-away documentaries won’t be disappointed. From Crip Camp, the uplifting documentary film executive produced by Barack and Michelle Obama about the progressive upstate New York summer camp that forged a new civil rights movement, to the series that examines the NFL player charged with murder — this is Vogue’s edit of the most buzz-creating real-life stories to stream now.

1. Don’t F**k With Cats (2019)

Courtesy Netflix

When this three-part true-crime docuseries hit Netflix back in December 2019 during the height of the festive season, we paused our seventh re-run of Elf for this peculiar and sinister story. Don’t F**k With Cats follows a group of self-appointed Facebook sleuths as they try to find the perpetrator behind a series of gruelling cat-killing videos anonymously posted online in 2010. Without revealing any spoilers, we’ll just say that the group — spearheaded by Deanna Thompson and John Green — embarks on a baleful journey that ends in murder of another kind. Not an easy watch, but a gripping exploration into the darkest corners of the internet.

2. Cheer (2020)

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The world’s perceptions of this once sugar-coated sport have been changed forever by Cheer, a heartfelt coming-of-age docuseries that unveils the athleticism, fearlessness and sheer grit of competitive cheerleaders. Filmed during the lead-up to the National Cheerleading Championship at Daytona Beach, Florida, we’re with the Navarro College Cheer Team every step, twirl and tumble of the way as they push themselves to their physical and emotional limits to win the admiration of their coach, Monica Aldama. Directed by Greg Whiteley (also behind Netflix’s Last Chance U), the show’s cast have become cult heroes off the mat, with Cheer stars Lexi Brumback and Gabi Butler taking New York Fashion Week in their stride back in February.

3. Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness (2020)

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Was anyone ready for the on-screen shenanigans of Joe Exotic, also known as the Tiger King? Probably not. But then what could have prepared us for the gun-toting, bigamous exploits of the big cat fanatic (read: animal rights pariah)?

The story of Joseph Maldonado-Passage (Joe Exotic’s real name) begins in Oklahoma and ends in a Texas prison (Grady County Jail). In between, we are drawn into a world where with mullets, guns, animal cruelty and wearing two belts at the same time are the norm. There’s animal print (and some eccentric political campaigning) in spades, plus a longtime feud with non-profit exotic cat sanctuary CEO and founder Carole Baskin, which eventually becomes Exotic’s undoing. While we might never know if Baskin did indeed feed her husband to the tigers (sardine oil?), we do know that Tiger King makes for a truly addictive watch.

4. Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (2020)

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This Netflix docufilm, produced by Barack and Michelle Obama, couldn’t have landed a moment too soon. Beginning as a conversation between co-directors Jim LeBrecht (who was born with spina bifida) and longtime Emmy-award winning documentarian Nicole Newnham, this emotionally fortifying film leads us through LeBrecht’s 1970s childhood memories of Camp Jened — a progressive space for disabled teenagers in upstate New York, where the seeds for a new generation of activists were first sown. Among them was Judith Heumann, Pat Figueroa and Denise McQuade, whose perseverance, collaboration and resilience would lead to the enforcement of the American Law of Disabilities Act that not only transformed countless lives, but has made the world a more equal place.

5. Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez (2020)

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Warning: the downfall of once-revered NFL player Aaron Hernandez does not make for easy viewing. This weighty three-part series looks beyond the gloss of multimillion-dollar salaries within the professional football circuit to tell a heart-wrenching story of a teenage sports prodigy, culminating in the murder of semi-professional football player Odin Lloyd — as well as highlighting the little-known of CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy), a condition that could have contributed to the tragedy.

6. Miss Americana (2020)

Courtesy NetflixCourtesy Netflix

Whether you’re a Taylor Swift fan or not, this film offers a rare insight into a life lived under a global spotlight. While we’ll admit this is certainly a break from the exploits of Joe Exotic — from the unvarnished story of Swift’s eating disorder to the personal impact of the 2009 VMAs that would spark a long-running feud with the Kardashian-Wests — Swift doesn’t pull any punches. Miss Americana is, in essence, a story of the desire to achieve (Swift claimed the number one spot on the Top Country Albums chart for 24 consecutive weeks aged just 16), which at this moment in history when we are all being forced to slow down, feels particularly poignant.