How Netflix’s Stalker Series ‘Baby Reindeer’ Became a Viral Sensation
Baby Reindeer is not the sort of show you’d necessarily expect to take over Netflix. It’s not a sensational true-crime drama, a flashily produced adaptation of pre-existing IP, or a genre show about a gaggle of adorable kids venturing into the Upside Down. Instead, writer-actor Richard Gadd’s surprise viral hit is a shattering, deeply humane, and personal story about his experience with a stalker.
Really, Gadd’s seven-episode series unfurls two parallel narratives. In the present, he’s dealing with Martha—a relentless stalker whom he met while working at a bar. At the same time, the ordeal also forces him to process an even more traumatic experience that happened five years beforehand, when he was an aspiring comedian in his early twenties.
In the series, which is currently the No. 1 show on Netflix in the U.S., Gadd plays Donny Dunn—a fictionalized version of himself. Speaking with the streamer’s editorial site Tudum, Gadd confirmed the show’s introductory text, which states that the series is a true story.