You’ve probably seen the grainy footage.
The yellow police tape stretching across a villa in Perugia. The blue-bootied forensic teams. The flashbulbs popping around a young woman with piercing blue eyes.
If you search for a who murdered Meredith Kercher documentary, you’re going to find a mountain of content. But honestly? Most of it isn’t really about Meredith. It’s about Amanda Knox. It’s about the media circus, the "Foxy Knoxy" headlines, and a prosecutor’s obsession with a "satanic orgy" theory that felt more like a movie script than a police report.
Meredith Kercher was 21. She was a student from London, bright and ambitious. On November 1, 2007, she was murdered in her bedroom. That is the one indisputable fact in a case that has been twisted, turned, and retried so many times it makes your head spin.
The Documentary That Actually Changed Everything
If you’re looking for the definitive watch, you basically have to start with the 2016 Netflix film Amanda Knox.
It’s visceral.
The directors, Rod Blackhurst and Brian McGinn, did something kinda gutsy—they let everyone talk. They interviewed Amanda. They interviewed her ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito. But the real kicker? They got Giuliano Mignini, the Italian prosecutor, to lay out his logic.
Mignini comes across as a man who truly believes he was fighting a spiritual battle against evil. He didn’t just see a crime scene; he saw a ritual. The documentary highlights the massive gap between Italian and American judicial mindsets.
But there’s a newer player in the game. In late 2025, Hulu dropped The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox. It’s a dramatized limited series, not a strict documentary, but it’s executive-produced by Knox herself alongside Monica Lewinsky.
It’s meta.
The series stars Grace Van Patten and tries to pull back the curtain on how a "normal" girl survives being the most hated woman in the world. However, many true crime purists argue it still doesn't focus enough on the victim.
Who Actually Did It?
People get confused because of the "flip-flop" verdicts.
Here is the breakdown of what the courts actually decided.
Rudy Guede is the only person whose conviction for the murder was never overturned. His DNA was everywhere. It was on Meredith, it was on her pillow, and his bloody handprint was under her body. He fled to Germany, was caught, and opted for a "fast-track" trial.
Guede was sentenced to 30 years, later reduced to 16. He was released in late 2021 after serving about 13 years.
Then you have Amanda and Raffaele.
They were convicted in 2009.
Acquitted in 2011.
Convicted again (in absentia) in 2014.
Finally, in 2015, the Italian Supreme Court definitively exonerated them.
The court didn't just say "not guilty." They cited "stunning flaws" in the investigation. They basically said the prosecution's case was a house of cards built on shoddy DNA work and a lack of motive.
The DNA Problem
A who murdered Meredith Kercher documentary will usually spend a lot of time on the kitchen knife.
The prosecution claimed they found Meredith’s DNA on the blade and Amanda’s on the handle. Sounds like a "smoking gun," right?
Not exactly.
Independent experts later found that the amount of DNA on the blade was so microscopic it was basically "background noise." It could have easily been contamination. Plus, the knife didn't even match the wounds on Meredith’s neck.
Why We Are Still Obsessed
Maybe it’s the setting. Perugia is a beautiful, ancient hilltop town. The idea of something so brutal happening in such a picturesque place is jarring.
Or maybe it’s the character archetypes. You had the "angel-faced killer," the "lovestruck boyfriend," and the "drifter." The media, especially the British tabloids, ate it up. Journalist Nick Pisa, who appears in the Netflix doc, is shockingly candid about this.
He basically admits that "the truth" wasn't as important as "the story."
If the story was juicy, it went on the front page. Checking facts could wait.
What to Watch Right Now
If you want the full picture, don't just stick to one source.
- Amanda Knox (Netflix, 2016): Best for understanding the media's role and hearing from Knox directly.
- The Murder of Meredith (BBC Select/Apple TV): This one tries to shift the focus back to Meredith and her family’s perspective, which is often lost.
- The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox (Hulu, 2025): Good for seeing the psychological aftermath and the 20-year journey to "closure."
The reality is that for the Kercher family, there is no real closure.
Rudy Guede is a free man today. In fact, as of mid-2025, he’s been back in the news for new, unrelated legal issues involving an ex-girlfriend. It’s a frustrating cycle for those who want justice for Meredith.
To get the most out of these documentaries, look for the technical details. Watch how the forensic teams handled the scene. Notice the lack of masks and the way they passed evidence around. It’s a masterclass in how not to conduct a murder investigation.
🔗 Read more: Andy Samberg New Movie News: Why Protecting Jared Is the Duo We Didn't Know We Needed
If you're diving into this case for the first time, start with the 2016 Netflix documentary to get the baseline facts, then move to the BBC's coverage for the Kercher family's side of the story. Comparing the two reveals the massive divide between the "media's Amanda" and the actual tragedy of Meredith.