Making a Murderer season two will be released on Friday 19 October 2018, Netflix has confirmed.


The new episodes of the hit true crime documentary will pick up the story of Steven Avery and his nephew Brendan Dassey, and reveal what has happened since the original series aired in December 2015.

Officially known as Making a Murderer Part 2, the series update will feature ten new episodes focussing on efforts to overturn the convictions against Avery and Dassey, as well as new evidence uncovered by Avery’s lawyer Kathleen Zellner during the appeals process.

Both men were convicted of murdering a young woman, Teresa Halbach, in 2005.

Filmmakers Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos spent ten years following the story of Steven Avery for the original series, charting how the Wisconsin man served 18 years in prison before being found innocent of sexual assault and attempted murder in 2003 – only to be arrested, charged and convicted for the murder of Halbach in 2007.

The filmmakers explained that these new episodes will explore further the “complicated web of American criminal justice,” following the story of two people serving life sentences for crimes they claim they did not commit.

“Steven and Brendan, their families and their legal and investigative teams have once again graciously granted us access, giving us a window into the complex web of American criminal justice,” Ricciardi and Demos said.

“Building on Part 1, which documented the experience of the accused, in Part 2, we have chronicled the experience of the convicted and imprisoned, two men each serving life sentences for crimes they maintain they did not commit. We are thrilled to be able to share this new phase of the journey with viewers.”

Avery’s request for a retrial was denied in October 2017, with judge Angela Sutkiewicz saying that “the defendant has failed to establish any grounds that would trigger the right to a new trial in the interests of justice”.

In September 2018, Avery was again refused a request for a new trail by a County court judge, but lawyer Zellner insisted that other judges would review the newly filed evidence.

So far only 1 Judge has ruled on Avery. At least 10 more will review before a final decision is made— on this evidence. If he is not freed we will file again. Never going to end until he is free. @lifeafterten @michellemalkin #makinganexonoree — Kathleen Zellner (@ZellnerLaw) September 8, 2018

Meanwhile, Dassey’s conviction was initially overturned by a federal judge in 2016 on the grounds the confession was “involuntary”.

However, the federal court’s decision was later overturned following an appeal from the prosecution.

The new episodes will follow Dassey’s post-conviction lawyers, Laura Nirider and Steven Drizin with Northwestern University’s Centre on Wrongful Convictions of Youth, in a legal battle that could take Dassey’s case all the way to the US Supreme Court.

Filmmakers Ricciardi and Demos have revealed in previous interviews how they agreed to film with Avery’s new lawyer Zellner for the new episodes, saying that working with her allows them an opportunity :to offer viewers something special and unique once again”.

The new episodes will be released all at once on Netflix.


This article was originally published on 25 September 2018