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Scandal over substance: From 'The Crown' to Jeffrey Dahmer 'Monster' Netflix shows no concern for the living

Both 'Dahmer' and 'The Crown' will have a stained legacy despite the quality of the production elements that made them hits for the streamer

Netflix may have scored wins with 'Dahmer' and 'The Crown' in terms of viewership since their respective releases, but the intense criticism hasn't ceased to date. The former garnered over 700 million hours of watch time and became the second-highest-viewed English show, and the fourth-highest most-viewed show in any language ever on the streamer. But it also had major flak coming in from certain segments of society who weren't too keen on these stories being told. Living members of the victims were unhappy, as was the Royal family when there was more than enough drama added for the effect.

'Dahmer' sparked enough outrage, especially from the victim's families who believed that Netflix stood to profit from the show. Adding to this were copious doses of glorified violence that brought back all the trauma. While sensationalism hasn't been alien, it came while telling the story of a criminal, and at the other end, focussing on a family's life and putting them under the microscope surely didn't have everyone patting the streaming network on the back. There have been two different sides to how the Evan Peters-starrer has been received: One side sees trauma and pain, while another section — after how the character was humanized was empathetic and there were cases of thirst-posting as well.

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'The Crown' Season 4 was the most controversial in all of the installments so far dealing with the royal family timeline between 1979 and 1990. The relationship between Prince Charles and Princess Diana took center stage, and Prince William was vocal in expressing his displeasure with how his parents' relationship was showcased. An insider shed light on how Williams felt, telling Daily Express that “The Duke of Cambridge is none too pleased with it. He feels that both his parents are being exploited and being presented in a false, simplistic way to make money.”

Leading to the question of how content now has all been about the juice and gossip compromising over the fact that there was actually a story of substance. Just to add, these two aren't the only series that added extra drama and earned the wrath of the audience. Jessica Biel's 'Candy' and even HBO's 'Showtime' saw major scrutiny despite the promising cast doing their bit to perfection. Editorializing a bit, it appears that the obsession with hatred, conspiracy, and violence has been one of the cornerstones when it comes to serializing real-life incidents.

Both 'Dahmer' and 'The Crown' will have a stained legacy. While the production elements certainly deserve all the plaudits, the rejection witnessed by the relatives of Dahmer’s victims, and in the other scenario, by the Royal family, and the disturbing way it’s been received on social media will always stick with these pieces of content.

'Dahmer' and 'The Crown' draw flak on the social media: 'Scandalous' and 'Disturbing'

"Just saw someone on FB write the words “Dahmer was just a boy looking for love” and that’s exactly what’s so dangerous about portraying real life murderers with the methods of fictional storytelling. Can we please not empathise with or romanticise serial killers? #DahmerNetflix," one of the fans wrote. This was seconded by another who said: "I’m as much a cliche fan of true crime as the next girl, but even I can’t get behind the Dahmer series. It glorifies horrors inflicted on innocent people, retraumatises their loved ones & gives Dahmer undeserved attention. There is no point to it beyond pure profit #DahmerNetflix"

"Unpopular opinion: I feel bad for the victims and people involved in Jeffrey Dahmer's case. It's like reliving your trauma when you see and hear about him everywhere. #JeffreyDahmer #DahmerNetflix," a fan remarked. "#DahmerNetflix is the most disturbing series I watched in recent times," another comment read. 'The Crown' had it's share of brickbats coming in. "It should be banned in the UK and the realms, apparently the then PoW tries to convince PM John Major his mother HM should abdicate in her 60s, Major is furious and Netflix never approached him for comment, this really is scandalous more so than the Panorama interview," a tweet said.

"I totally understand him! And I’m sure he feels angrier with the fact that H is working for them and is totally fine doing that to his late mother too! Shame on Netflix," a comment read. "Netflix don't care for anything except $$$$$$$$. Certainly not the feelings of Diana's children, Diana's brother and sisters, Diana's nieces, nephews, grandchildren, God children, friends etc," a fan wrote. "Are TV shows now not able to recreate historical fact? That would be extremely dangerous This is a matter of public record I know I watched the original. You can't oretend it didn't happen or ban a programme from referring to or recreating it as part if a drama," one of the fans asked. "This is just so wrong. Netflix should not be allowed to do this. It’s absolutely rubbish, hurting so many people. Which in turn could really hurt the actual ‘CROWN."