Netflix’s next true crime documentary is already shocking viewers

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Our Father comes to Netflix next month, and it looks wild

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Netflix has already enjoyed a string of true crime hits this year, but its latest documentary could be its most shocking yet. It's called Our Father and it debuts on the streaming service next month — but it’s already got Netflix subscribers talking after a teaser trailer was launched earlier this week. 

Our Father follows the story of Donald Cline, a former fertility doctor who fathered more than 50 children by illegally artificially inseminating his sperm into dozens of women in the 1970s and 1980s. The story first surfaced in 2015, and the tale is so shocking that it’s no wonder that it’s been turned into a doc. 

While the full feature won’t hit Netflix until May 11, a short two-minute trailer has taken social media by storm already. In the trailer, we are introduced to Jacoba Ballard, who was one of the first people to discover that Cline was her father. While she was previously aware she was conceived via sperm donation, Cline had told his patients that donors were medical residents, but as Ballard discovered she had more and more half-siblings the shocking truth quickly surfaced.  

The documentary will focus on how Ballard and her half-siblings unearthed Cline’s “sick experiment,” and how they continued to find more victims caught up in this horrific situation. It will also look at the inadequate legal systems which made prosecuting Cline a more challenging task than you might imagine. 

It’s fair to say that Netflix subscribers are eagerly anticipating this one. Social media has reacted to this first look at Our Father with disgust, but also an eagerness to see how this almost unbelievable story plays out. It would seem that Netflix has all the ingredients here for another true crime hit just like Bad Vegan and The Tinder Swindler before it. 

Right now, Netflix will be glad to have social media discussing Our Father rather than its quarterly loss of subscribers for the first time in a decade. Between price hikes and underperforming content, Netflix is weathering a bit of a storm right now, but if it can churn out more true crime docs like Our Father we’re sure plenty of viewers will stick around.

Rory Mellon
Rory Mellon
Senior Entertainment Editor (UK)

Rory is a Senior Entertainment Editor at Tom’s Guide based in the UK. He covers a wide range of topics but with a particular focus on gaming and streaming. When he’s not reviewing the latest games, searching for hidden gems on Netflix, or writing hot takes on new gaming hardware, TV shows and movies, he can be found attending music festivals and getting far too emotionally invested in his favorite football team.