True crime has been one of the most successful genres on Netflix, which has produced several documentaries, docuseries and dramas that have become successful, critically and among audiences. So, it’s not surprising that “Can I Tell You A Secret?” is currently one of the most popular titles on the platform worldwide.
The documentary, which is divided in two-parts, has reached the second spot of the most streamed list globally only one day after its release, according to FlixPatrol. It follows three victims of cyberstalker Matthew Hardy, who was convicted in 2022 to a nine-year sentence.
While it was the lengthiest sentence ever imposed in the UK for online stalking, the series showcased how the police dismissed the victims’ concerns at first. It was only when officer PC Kevin Anderson decided to take the case seriously that Hardy’s web of cyberstalking was discovered.
The docuseries is based on a The Guardian investigation
The series was produced by Louis Theroux’s Mindhouse production company in association with the Guardian. Hardy’s case was first covered in G2 by Sirin Kale, then through a six-part Guardian podcast series in 2022. Kale appears in the series to talk about how she found out about the story.
The show primarily focuses on three women targeted by Hardy: Abby, Zoe, and Lia. All three had a strong online presence and began receiving messages from a stranger, who appeared to be female, using the phrase that gives the series its title.
However, after a few texts, they realized something was off and ceased all communication. That’s when things took a turn for the worse: Hardy began creating fake profiles of the women, posing as them or as people they had met, messaging their boyfriends, and spreading rumors about them. He also started to get more violent with his messages to them.
What critics are saying about the documentary?
Lucy Mangan of The Guardian wrote that “The documentary does an excellent job of marshaling the salient facts and pivotal points of a large, sprawling case involving multiple people,” and that “It does so without making him the star of the show.” She gave it four stars out of five.
Meanwhile, The Standard gives it three stars out of five. Vicky Jessop writes that one of the failures of the series is that “there just isn’t enough airtime to condense this hugely complex story into less than two hours.” So, there are important details that are rushed.