The Watcher has taken over the No 1 spot and is terrifying viewers
After weeks of non-stop Jeffrey Dahmer headlines, the serial killer series has finally been dethroned from the top spot on Netflix and been replaced by another true-crime horror.
Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story was released on September 21 and set social media alight. From the initial horror of the killer’s cannibalistic crime spree, to Evan Peters’ portrayal of Dahmer and the streaming service categorising it under LGBTQ+, the show was never out of the news.
Now, The Watcher has everyone talking.
It is from Ryan Murphy, the brains behind American Horror Story, Ratched, Scream Queens and many others, and is based on a true story.
The mystery-thriller, released on Thursday, follows the chilling tale of a suburban family, the Brannocks’, who start to receive letters from an anonymous stalker who has been “obsessed” with their house for decades.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HDkw100sXQ
In the letter, The Watcher claims the house has been “the subject of [his] family for decades now” and that he has been in charge of “watching and waiting for its second coming”. The couple’s life then “becomes a living hell”.
“Ominous letters from someone calling themself ‘The Watcher’ are just the beginning as the neighborhood’s sinister secrets come spilling out. Inspired by the true story of the infamous ‘Watcher’ house in New Jersey,” a Netflix synopsis reads.
The story is based on that of Derek and Maria Broaddus. The couple brought a six-bedroom house in Westfield, New Jersey, for $1.3m in June 2014. They were then bombarded with letters.
Derek and Maria are played by Naomi Watts and Bobby Cannavale.
The letter read: “My grandfather watched the house in the 1920s and my father watched in the 1960s. It is now my time. Do you know the history of the house? Do you know what lies within the walls of 657 Boulevard? Why are you here? I will find out.”
The letter itself is disturbing enough, but what really tipped the Brannocks’ over the edge was the intimate knowledge the Watcher possessed of their family, which they could have only learned from overhearing their personal conversations.
“Do you need to fill the house with the young blood I requested? Better for me,” the letter read.
https://twitter.com/ryanmurphyprod/status/1573759422723084288
“Was your old house too small for the growing family? Or was it greed to bring me your children? Once I know their names I will call to them and draw them too [sic] me.”
“All of the windows and doors in 657 Boulevard allow me to watch you and track you as you move through the house. Who am I? I am the Watcher and have been in control of 657 Boulevard for the better part of two decades now… I pass by many times a day.”
watching the watcher as if im not home alone most nights and already constantly feel like someone's watching me
— Elijah (@takodaaa_) October 13, 2022
Providing some early feedback, one viewer tweeted, “Watching The Watcher as if I’m not home alone most nights and already constantly feel like someone’s watching me.”
Another echoed those sentiments: “The Watcher is really creepy,” before adding, “Now I’m scared to be alone in my house. Everything feels so creepy, I don’t wanna be alone.”
While some other viewers had a slightly different take.
I'm about to start watching The Watcher on Netflix. Haunted House genre really stresses me out but not because of the ghosts, but because these people always put all their savings into the house and then are left with nothing. As an adult – this is stressful af lol
— dr. a / 张艺兴的한국서
(@academicsheep) October 13, 2022
https://twitter.com/vorianmuaddib/status/1581058438649421825
https://twitter.com/sendmeforgetme1/status/1580764973638172672
Why is the wife just trynna fuck while her husbands trying to solve a string of unsolved mysteries in THEIR HOME. Girl if u don’t put on ur detective hat and help… #TheWatcher #TheWatcherNetflix pic.twitter.com/Aqf6yjy5yE
— rue’s clues (@kiissx_xme) October 13, 2022
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