Red Arrow Studios International has secured a raft of deals for feature-length documentary “Slender Man: The Untold Story.” The true-crime documentary, about the case of two girls whose obsession with a fictional internet character was cited for their attempted murder of a friend, was picked up by Nine Network in Australia.
European sales have also been closed with SVT for Sweden, TV2 in Norway, VTM in Belgium, and RTS for French-speaking Switzerland.
“Slender Man: The Untold Story” debuted in the U.S. on Hubbard Broadcasting’s Reelz network in January under the extended title “Slender Man Stabbing: The Untold Story,” resulting in a 54% increase in the network’s average viewing figures.
Produced by the Red Arrow-owned Dorsey Pictures for Reelz, it documents the 2014 case of two 12-year-old Wisconsin girls who lured a friend into local woods before stabbing her multiple times. The documentary follows the trial and includes exclusive interviews with police officers, lawyers, witnesses, and psychologists involved in the bizarre case, probing questions such as whether children should be tried as adults, whether a mentally ill person can be said to have premeditated a crime, and whether an attempted murderer can also be a victim.
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“As the global appetite for true-crime content continues to accelerate, we’re thrilled to be building upon the success of the U.S. broadcast and bring this fascinating program to new international audiences,” said Bo Stehmeier, president of Red Arrow Studios International.
The case and growing internet lore around the fictional bogeyman, who is depicted as a preternaturally tall and featureless black-suited figure, have previously inspired a number of film and television documentaries and narrative features. These include HBO’s 2016 feature documentary “Beware the Slenderman,” directed by Irene Taylor Brodsky, and Screen Gems’ 2018 fictional horror feature “Slender Man,” starring Joey King and directed by Sylvain White.