Today in "Why?": Peacock announces 3-part Casey Anthony documentary

We’re really scraping the bottom of the barrel to feed America’s insatiable appetite for stories about terrible people now, aren’t we? Just one day after Netflix announced it would be serving up two more seasons of its extremely popular, extremely controversial, and definitely exploitative Ryan Murphy series, Monster, Peacock has decided to throw its hat in the ring with its very own ill-advised platforming. The lucky winner? Accused child murderer Casey Anthony. Remember her? Yeah… we wish we didn’t have to either.

If you have blissfully avoided thinking about this trial since its conclusion 11 years ago, here’s a quick refresher. In 2008, Anthony was accused of first-degree murder, aggravated child abuse, and a slew of other crimes when the body of her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee Anthony, was found near her family’s house. The resulting trial in 2011 was a cultural phenomenon (Time called it the “social-media trial of the century”) and ended in a verdict of not guilty. Anthony never testified in her defense at the trial.

Peacock’s 3-part series, titled Casey Anthony: Where The Truth Lies, will be the first time Anthony tells her side of the story on camera. It is directed by Alexandra Dean (This Is Paris, Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story) and “is told through Casey’s account of the infamous investigation,” according to a press release.

In a longer statement, Dean writes:

Since her acquittal in 2011, public opinion of Casey Anthony has been largely shaped by the media convinced of her guilt. Casey had never given an in-depth or on-camera interview explaining her actions until now, and as a filmmaker and journalist, my interest was in getting closer to the unbiased truth by hearing all sides of the story – from opposing voices to Casey herself. While having access to Casey was critical, it was even more important that we had complete editorial control over the outcome of the reporting we did. Casey did not see or give notes on the film. What emerges over the course of multiple interviews recorded over six months, is a startling psychological portrait of Casey Anthony and a complete narrative of what she says happened to her daughter weighed against multiple sources of potential evidence. I believe the result will surprise many, and cause the American public to look at this story in a new light.

Casey Anthony: Where The Truth Lies premieres on Peacock on November 29.