While Making a Murderer has been wildly popular around the world, not everyone is excited by the prospect of a second season. Like the entire residency of Manitowoc County, for example.
A hatred for the first series – which wholly condemns the Manitowoc County Police Department – is rife in the area, as is a severe distaste for its creators Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos.
“Law enforcement are not the only gun owners in Manitowoc County,” Ricciardi nervously told a Sydney audience last night. “Residents have guns.”
Members of the Wisconsin community believe their law enforcement officers have been unfairly portrayed by the New York filmmakers, and undertones of violence have made Ricciardi and Demos nervous about their imminent return.
Watch Ricciardi and Demos in an interview on Today below (post continues after video).
The revelation of the duo’s anxieties was made at last night’s Sydney Now Festival, where they had an open audience discussion alongside host Charlie Pickering.
“We’ve talked about continuing to follow the story,” said a hesitant Demos, “But that would involve going back.”
The prospect of a second series is undoubtedly daunting for the documentary-makers, who went into the first series with incredibly low profiles.
“We were the unknown, we were different, we weren’t part of the ecosystem of the town,” said Demos. “For some people, that was a reason to open up to us. Others put up a wall.”
While shooting the series, the pair rented an apartment in the Wisconsin area and lived together while filming the 10-part series. Many of the people Ricciardi and Demos met are now angry, and not willing to welcome them back with open arms.
by airing their dirty laundry,” said Ricciardi. “That was never our intention. We wanted to thoroughly and accurately document what we were seeing.”
Criticism that the two were biased in the series has been widespread since its premier late last year, yet the pair deny having any preconceived belief of whether Avery is guilty or not.
Despite this, both Ricciardi and Demos were open about their personal involvement with the Avery family, telling the audience they shared meals with them and grew particularly sympathetic for Barb, the mother of Avery’s co-accused nephew, Brendan Dassey.
Meanwhile, the pair admit they are seeking to be more balanced in the second series, stating they are looking to increase contact with Teresa Halbach’s family.
“We’d reach out to the other side too. We want to be as sensitive as possible but we think it’s important to cast a wide net”, Ricciardi told Pickering.
And while criticism might be intimidating, Demos says they have no regrets when it comes to making the initial documentary: “An extremely important story to tell, about the experience of being accused [and] about everyone having equal access to a fair trial.
“It was a quest. That was the experience we wanted to give viewers.”
Will you be watching the second season of Making A Murderer?
Featured Image: Screenshot via YouTube