Featured Image Credit: Robert Mora/Getty Images
Topics: Hugh Hefner, Film and TV, Documentaries, UNILAD RANKED
Poppy Bilderbeck
Topics: Hugh Hefner, Film and TV, Documentaries, UNILAD RANKED
Warning: This article contains discussion of sexual assault, drug use and rape which some readers may find distressing.
Exposing the reality of Hugh Hefner and his Playboy Mansion, UNILAD RANKED brings you four documentaries offering highly contrasting points of view.
American men's lifestyle and entertainment magazine, Playboy, was first founded in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates.
Playboy and Hefner were praised for playing an important role in the sexual revolution - but at what cost?
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The brand was far from without its flaws - Hefner's infamous Playboy Mansion and the antics which occurred inside coming under increasing scrutiny in the years since the editor-in-chief passed away in 2017 at the age of 91.
Since Hefner's passing, many so-called Playmates or 'bunnies' have come forward detailing their experiences, with Hefner accused of drugging, filming sex acts which happened in the mansion without consent, and rape.
Many accusations have come to light amid documentaries being made about Hefner and the mansion, some documentaries made prior to his passing and with his input and others following after.
So this week, UNILAD RANKED brings you four documentaries to dive into to get to the bottom of the world of Playboy, in order of date released.
Granted, The Girls Next Door is a reality TV series, but that doesn't mean it doesn't still shed some light on life inside the mansion.
Created by executive producer Kevin Burns (America's Book of Secrets) alongside Hefner himself, the series first premiered on E! in August 2005 and ran for six seasons starring Hefner's then three main girlfriends - Holly Madison, Bridget Marquardt and Kendra Wilkinson.
New girlfriends Crystal Harris alongside twins Kristina Shannon and Karissa Shannon then took over as the lead roles in season six.
With the DVD releases featuring uncensored nudity, the series - available to stream on Amazon Prime Video - also offered a stripped back look at day-to-day life inside the Playboy Mansion, primarily following the lives of Hefner's girlfriends, the publisher and other celebrities making various appearances throughout.
An IMDb user reviewed the series as 'very funny' with 'some touching moments', others 'somewhat nasty' and 'degrading'.
And next up is another series released the year of Hefner's passing.
Directed by Richard Lopez (The Cry), the 2017 television series by Amazon Prime Video stars Matt Whelan (Go Girls), Emmett Skilton (The Almighty Johnsons) and Chelsie Preston Crayford (A Remarkable Place to Die).
Across the ten episodes, the series dives into over 17,000 hours worth of archival footage and interviews, alongside over 2,600 scrapbooks from Hefner's personal archive - spanning six decades from before the birth of Playboy to the present day.
It's important to note Hefner was heavily involved in the producing of the series, with executive producer Stephen David telling Yahoo TV that the publisher weighed in during 'the entire process,' going through not only the script with 'notes' but also going through 'every single cut' too.
The exec noted: "We were telling the story from his point of view, which is fairly difficult in the first place, and he’s the only one that actually lived this life."
However, he argued Hefner didn't want to 'hide' anything and wanted to 'tell the truth, even if the truth is bad' - Hefner revealing his previous addiction to Dexedrine.
Whelan starred as Hefner, with the actor opening up about not wanting to make him 'become like a caricature' and praising Hefner as a 'charming' 'gentleman'.
The series has been praised by a viewer as an 'eye opener' and revealing 'an inspiring story' of how Hefner came to be. "Worth a watch just to understand the cultural impact playboy has had on society," they added.
The series and the previous aren't the only two available on Amazon Prime either, although the next up sheds light on Hefner and Playboy in quite a different way.
Created in the years following Hefner's death, Secrets of Playboy revealed an insight into Hefner and the brand not from the perspective of the editor-in-chief himself but from the Playmates.
Directed by Arlene Nelson (Angel City) alongside Domini Hofmann (Worst Roommate Ever), the documentary series saw women who lived and worked at Playboy come forward detailing allegations of abuse and exploitation within the mansion and empire.
The series sees Madison claim the publisher 'didn't want to use protection' - backed by another former partner, Kristina Shannon.
Others who featured in Playboy, lived in the mansion or dated Hefner also came forward accusing Hefner of drug-related offences, sexual assault, rape and filming sex which took place in the mansion without the consent of those involved.
As one viewer noted: "It just gets worse and worse."
"Very deep dive into what really happened within playboy. I really appreciate the older women's interviews showing how long this has gone on," another added.
And next up is another series produced after Hefner's passing, once more offering a much harsher view of the empire.
Directed by Andrea De Brito (Menendez Brothers: Misjudged?) alongside Dan Howlett, the series is hosted by Madison and features other ex-partners of Hefner, Playmates, journalists, employees, and criminologists.
The series looks into criminal cases linked to Playboy magazine - from the murder of Jasmine Fiore alongside the murder of model Christina Carlin-Kraft in 2018 as well as the partner of a former Playboy bunny being murdered too.
It's been reviewed as 'chilling' and 'heartbreaking' with one viewer saying they've been left feeling 'haunted'.
You can catch The Playboy Murders on Investigation Discovery+ and a new season just dropped earlier this week on May 5.
Multiple women who experienced the Playboy mansion have since released books detailing further experiences and allegations, while Madison has also launched a podcast called Girls Next Level with co-host and fellow former Playmate Marquardt.
UNILAD RANKED is a weekly series with a new article released every Friday.