New Zealand Police had to disclose through Official Information Act requests that Netflix is producing a documentary about Tom Phillips, the father who took his three children and disappeared into the bush, according to Stuff.
The revelation raises uncomfortable questions about the intersection of true crime entertainment, active police investigations, and a live manhunt for three missing children.
True crime while kids are still missing
Mate, Netflix is making content while those kids are still out there. Let that sink in.
Tom Phillips disappeared with his three children - Jayda, Maverick, and Ember - in December 2021. Since then, there have been sporadic sightings, a massive manhunt, and enormous public interest in the case.
But there's a difference between legitimate news coverage of an ongoing investigation and a streaming giant packaging the story for entertainment. One serves the public interest. The other serves subscriber numbers.
Netflix has built an empire on true crime documentaries. Some are excellent journalism. Others exploit tragedy for views. The question is which category this falls into - and whether it's appropriate to be producing it while the investigation is still active.
Why didn't police want to say so?
Police initially declined to reveal Netflix's involvement, only disclosing it after being forced to through the Official Information Act. That alone tells you something.
There are a few possible reasons for the reluctance. Police might have been concerned about appearing to cooperate with commercial entertainment while the children are still missing. They might have been worried about how the documentary could affect the investigation. Or they might have signed confidentiality agreements with Netflix that they were trying to honor.
