One of life’s greatest mysteries is the identity of the Zodiac Killer. The famous serious killer was active between 1968 and 1969, and all these decades later the identity of the assailant has never been known. There have been plenty of theories as to who it is, and the upcoming Netflix documentary This is the Zodiac Speaking sheds additional light on who it could be. The three-part series says it has new information about the case, the second show in as many years covering the Zodiac’s potential identity.
The series, co-directed by Ari Mark and Phil Lott, has new interviews and clues that hone in on Arthur Leigh Allen as the killer’s identity. To date, he has been the only person ever named a suspect in the case. He was portrayed in David Fincher’s 2007 film Zodiac by John Carroll Lynch, and the Netflix series creators say that movie helped them complete the puzzle.
“Fincher filmed at the real sites of the murders, and they realize, ‘maybe he really was the Zodiac killer, because he took us to all these places,‘” co-director Ari Mark told Variety. “And they started uncovering all these letters that he’d been writing back and forth with their mother that are the most incriminating letters in the world.” The Zodiac Killer was famous for the ciphers he sent to newspapers in California, the site of the murders. He began each one with “This is the Zodiac speaking,” which is where the docuseries got its title from.
This is the Zodiac Speaking directors Mark and Lott also worked with author Robert Graysmith, the man who wrote the book that inspired Fincher’s film. The pair say they “had access with him in a way that nobody has really had,” according to Variety.
What to Expect in Zodiac Docuseries
True-crime fans who are interested in the Zodiac Killer case have quite a bit to look forward to in the series. Mark and Lott say a lot of what will be revealed in the series is new information, since Allen, the lone suspect, died in 1992 and there hasn’t been much movement since. Lott said:
“A lot of this material is brand new. It hasn’t been seen before because when [Allen] died, there was no more investigation from a law enforcement perspective. So there’s no one really to send it to. So we got to look all those letters and read the crazy, very incriminating material.”
According to Variety, the creators have interviews with family friends of Allen along with a family who once had him as a teacher. They’ll also go through physical and archival evidence owned by the family to help shed more light on the suspect. Of course, there can’t be any true justice since Allen passed away decades ago, but it can help bring some closure to the case that has puzzled America for more than 50 years.
This is the Zodiac Speaking
is set to release on October 23 exclusively on Netflix.