Everything In Conversation : Lucy Letby & True Crime

Happy Wednesday EIConversationalists. This week we ask, should everything be content?

As of early February 2026, there are at least seven major television and streaming documentaries specifically focused on the case of Lucy Letby. The latest documentary The Investigation of Lucy Letby landed on Netflix earlier this month, featuring, in their words ‘never-before-seen footage as well as interviews with case investigators, a friend of Letby, and one of the victims’ parents.’

The words “digitally anonymised” popped up every time the grieving mother, or Letby’s college friend, “Maisie”, appeared on screen, because although the documentary used their real voices, and real words they used Ai generated humans to represent them.

In a piece for Newsweek H. Alan Scott writes, ‘On paper, the logic is sound. In practice, it is deeply unsettling. The closer you look, the more the illusion unravels. They are talking FaceTuned images—avatars trapped in the uncanny valley, mimicking sorrow without any of the soul, Instead of honoring the victims and grappling with the incomprehensible horror of Letby's crimes, we are left debating the ethics of a visual effect.’

Netflix defended the decision to Esquire, stating the technology was used "to protect the anonymity of the contributors at their request."

The evening standard said it was 'a morally egregious use of AI slop'

Aside from the AI issue which we go into, we can’t stop thinking about how many documentaries are popping up, seemingly constantly, about things that have just happened or are still happening.

Do true crime documentaries need to have such a big place in our culture?

Thank you so much for all of your opinions and takes on this topic, we love being in conversation with you all. O, R, B xxoxo

The Investigation of Lucy Letby review – this sensationalist take isn’t what this awful case needs

Why The Investigation of Lucy Letby's 'Digitally Anonymised' Documentary is Causing Controversy

Lucy Letby’s parents: Netflix show is an ‘invasion of privacy’

Netflix’s Use of AI Deepfakes is a Betrayal of True Crime

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