Netflix subscribers watching the new BTK Killer documentary have been left distracted by an ironic detail.
The platform's latest true crime doc tells the story of Kerri Rawson, the daughter of US serial killer Dennis Rader, also known as the 'Bind, Torture, Kill' killer.
Rader brutally murdered 10 people in Wichita and Park City, Kansas, over the span of three decades, managing to steer clear of police despite taunting them with letters and packages. A church council president and Boy Scout leader, Rader lived an otherwise normal life.
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He managed to fool everyone, including his wife of 34 years, Paula Dietz, and their two children, Brian and Kerri, who were none the wiser.
It wasn't until 2005, when Kerri was 26, that Rader was arrested and his despicable crimes were uncovered.
In the documentary, Kerri details what it was like to grow up with her father, whom she says she is 'always going to love'.
She also delves into the aftermath of Rader's convictions, including why she chose to break her years-long silence to the media.
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It was, in fact, author Stephen King using Rader as inspiration for his novella-turned-movie, A Good Marriage, that prompted Kerri to speak out.
The story follows a woman who discovers, after 27 years of marriage, that her husband is secretly a serial killer.
King found the concept fascinating, telling reporters: "I did believe [that Rader's wife, Paula, could not know] - I do believe - and I wrote this story to explore what might happen in such a case if the wife suddenly found out about her husband’s awful hobby.
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"I also wrote it to explore the idea that it’s impossible to fully know anyone, even those we love the most."
But Kerri wasn't a fan and reckoned the writer was exploiting her family.
Speaking to the Wichita Eagle, she said: "He’s exploiting my father’s 10 victims and their families.
"He’s just going to give my father a big head, and he absolutely does not need that... Any money King makes off this story should go either to abused children, battered wives, or police."
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This is brought up again in the Netflix documentary, as Kerri recalls that she was 'so upset' with King.
She'd learnt about A Good Marriage after her then-husband saw the horror writer talking on morning TV.
"I had been silent for so long and there was so much stuff that needed to come out," Kerri admitted. "I was just upset that [King] had decided to use our parents as inspiration."
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Viewers didn't appear all too sympathetic, however, and rushed to social media to share their thoughts.
Many pointed out the irony in Kerri criticizing King but agreeing to the Netflix doc.
Kerri has also written two non-fiction books of her own; 2019's A Serial Killer's Daughter and 2023's Breaking Free: Overcoming the Trauma of My Serial Killer Father.
"Imagine blaming a fiction writer for using your father as inspiration for a horror story book, instead of blaming your sadistic, child murdering, serial killing father for giving people inspiration to write horror stories. Good grief. #StephenKing #BTK," one said.
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"Kerri said she doesn’t get paid for interviews & everything else. But, here she is doing a documentary about her father. On top of a doing a book. Then she goes on about
@StephenKing..." a second said.
"She wants to be known as Kerri Rawson not BTKs daughter...and yet here we are again," a third said.
In all fairness, it's not like Kerri can actually win; she speaks out about her father and she's criticized, but if she were to keep quiet, she'd be bombarded with people wanting to know more and pressured to speak out.
Others were more supportive of Kerri, as she was also flooded with messages hailing her strength and courage.
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Speaking to Netflix Tudum, Kerri indicated the documentary could be the 'final step' she takes in openly discussing her father's crimes.
It reportedly served as both a closing chapter and a major milestone in her journey to closure.
The film's director, Skye Borgman, told Tudum: "This isn’t a film about a crime - it’s a story about a woman who has spent her life trying to reconcile love, betrayal and family.
"I don’t think closure is ever a neat, final thing for someone in her position. But I do think that telling her story on her own terms has been a kind of reclaiming.
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"It’s less about closing a door and more about finally being able to walk through it on her own."
My Father, the BTK Killer is streaming now on Netflix.
Topics: Netflix, True crime, Film and TV, Streaming, Stephen King
Ellie Kemp