Netflix’s The Son of Sam Tapes Reopens One of New York’s Most Disturbing Crime Cases
Nearly 50 years after David Berkowitz terrorised New York, a new Netflix documentary is giving viewers an unusually personal look at the case — through recordings in which the convicted killer reflects on his childhood, his crimes and the path that led him to become the “Son of Sam.”
Conversations with a Killer: The Son of Sam Tapes premiered on July 30, 2025. Directed by Joe Berlinger, the three-part true-crime series revisits Berkowitz’s 1976–77 killing spree through previously unheard audio, interviews with investigators and journalists, and testimony from survivors and people connected to the case.
At the centre of the documentary are rare interviews recorded by journalist Jack Jones, in which Berkowitz discusses his upbringing, his anger and his own explanation of what drove him toward violence. The result is an intimate and deeply unsettling examination of a case that once left an entire city living in fear.
Netflix describes the series as a combination of present-day interviews and newly uncovered recordings exploring Berkowitz’s impact on New York during the 1970s.
Who was the “Son of Sam”?
David Berkowitz was arrested in August 1977 after a series of shootings that killed six people and wounded several others.
He initially became known as the “.44 Caliber Killer” before the name “Son of Sam” took hold, inspired by letters he sent to police and journalists while taunting investigators.
His attacks began in New York in 1976 and continued into the following year. Because the victims appeared to have been chosen at random, the shootings created an extraordinary sense of uncertainty. Residents were left wondering where the killer might strike next.
Following his arrest, Berkowitz was sentenced to six consecutive life terms and remains incarcerated in New York.
The documentary makes extensive use of interviews Jones recorded with him in 1980 at Attica Correctional Facility, giving audiences access to Berkowitz’s own account of the events and experiences he believed shaped him.
The childhood experiences Berkowitz blamed for his anger
Some of the documentary’s most disturbing passages involve Berkowitz discussing his early life.
He says discovering that he had been adopted profoundly affected him. He describes believing that a man connected to his birth might resent him because of the circumstances surrounding his adoption.
“I thought there was a man out there that hated me and was possibly going to try to kill me for causing the death of his wife,” Berkowitz says in the series.
He describes that period as a turning point. His anger began affecting his relationship with his adoptive mother, while he increasingly withdrew from other people and viewed himself as an outsider.
Berkowitz later learned that his biological mother was alive and that his biological father had abandoned him. He says those feelings of rejection and isolation contributed to the anger he eventually directed outward.
“I was so angry, I blamed others, and I started committing my crimes to make people pay attention to me,” he says.
The documentary does not suggest that a difficult childhood inevitably leads to violence. Berlinger stresses that many people experience trauma without becoming killers.
“Lots of children have traumatic childhoods, and they don’t turn into killers,” the director says.
Instead, the series examines Berkowitz’s own account while leaving viewers to consider the complicated psychological circumstances surrounding the crimes.
A city living in fear
Berkowitz’s attacks changed everyday life across New York.
The apparent randomness of the shootings made ordinary situations feel threatening. Couples became increasingly cautious about sitting in parked cars, while some women altered their appearance because of reports that the killer had targeted women with long brown hair.
Some cut their hair short or dyed it blonde. Others avoided going out altogether, while parents warned their daughters to remain at home.
The intense media attention surrounding the investigation only added to the atmosphere of fear. Berkowitz’s letters to police and journalists turned the case into a national story, while investigators were working without the computerised systems and rapid data-sharing tools available to law enforcement today.
TIME reported in August 1977 that Berkowitz had attacked couples in lovers’ lanes, targeted people leaving discos and even fired at girls sitting on house porches.
The case would ultimately become a striking example of the relationship between crime, media coverage and public fear.
Why were couples targeted?
The documentary also explores Berkowitz’s apparent fixation on young couples.
According to Berlinger, that fixation was linked to Berkowitz’s feelings about his own birth. After learning he was the product of an affair, Berkowitz developed a resentment toward couples involved in what he viewed as illicit relationships.
“When Berkowitz realised he was the product of an affair,” Berlinger explains, “he began targeting young lovers having illicit sex in their cars, producing unwanted children.”
The series separates the attempt to understand Berkowitz’s thinking from any suggestion that his actions could be justified. That distinction is central to its exploration of the psychological background surrounding the killings.
Survivors reveal the lasting impact
While Berkowitz’s voice is a major part of the documentary, some of its most powerful moments come from those whose lives were directly changed by the shootings.
The series features surviving victims and relatives of people who were killed, bringing a deeply personal perspective to a case that has been examined for decades.
Wendy Savino, now 88, appears as Berkowitz’s first victim. She was shot in April 1976 and says she has carried a sketch of Berkowitz in her handbag for 47 years.
The detail offers a powerful reminder that the case is more than an infamous chapter in New York’s history. For those who survived, its consequences have remained part of their lives long after the headlines disappeared.
The documentary also includes accounts from people involved in the investigation, alongside interviews with police officers, journalists and others connected to the case.
Berkowitz reflects on his crimes
Another important component of The Son of Sam Tapes is Berkowitz’s willingness to look back on his crimes.
Berlinger interviewed him by phone in 2024 for the documentary. During the conversation, Berkowitz describes being trapped in a “dark space” and acknowledges how far his life had spiralled.
“My life spun out of control, and I just couldn’t get on that right path,” he says.
When asked what he would tell his younger self, his response is blunt:
“‘Dave, run for your life. Get help.’”
He says he could have turned to his father or sister but instead kept his feelings to himself.
The documentary also revisits one of the strangest elements of the original case: Berkowitz’s claims that a demon-possessed dog had instructed him to kill. According to Netflix’s account of the newly featured recordings, he later admitted that the story had been fabricated to create confusion and help him evade capture.
A case that helped define true crime
For Berlinger, the importance of the Son of Sam case extends beyond the shootings themselves.
The documentary examines how Berkowitz communicated with the media and how journalists became part of the unfolding story. Berlinger argues that the relationship helped establish a pattern that would later become familiar within true crime culture.
“The way Berkowitz interacted with the media, the way the media willingly cooperated—everyone in New York couldn’t wait for the next headline,” Berlinger says.
The series also considers how much policing has changed since the 1970s. Without today’s computerised databases and rapid information-sharing systems, investigators faced greater difficulty connecting cases and evidence across different investigations.
Despite the conspiracy theories that have surrounded the case over the years, the documentary presents Berkowitz as acting alone. The killings ended after his arrest.
Viewers are divided — but many find it deeply unsettling
The three-episode series has already prompted strong reactions from viewers.
Some have been particularly struck by the intimacy of hearing Berkowitz speak in his own words. One viewer described Conversations with a Killer as potentially “one of the most chillingly intimate documentaries yet” among Netflix’s true-crime productions.
Another called it one of Netflix’s best true-crime docuseries, while another joked that they planned to hide in their room while watching The Son of Sam Tapes.
The response has not been universally positive. One viewer found the series “a bit of a slog,” criticising what they saw as a lack of clear perspective and arguing that it offered little genuinely new information.
Even so, much of the discussion has centred on the documentary’s access to Berkowitz’s own recordings and the emotional weight of hearing directly from people who experienced the case.
That combination gives a familiar true-crime story a more personal perspective, bringing together the killer’s recollections, the investigation and the long-term experiences of survivors.
The Son of Sam Tapes on Netflix
The official trailer presents the series as a look back at one of New York City’s biggest manhunts, combining the investigation with newly unearthed recordings of Berkowitz.
Conversations with a Killer: The Son of Sam Tapes is now streaming on Netflix and consists of three episodes: Fear City, On the Prowl and No One Is Safe.