Alex Murdaugh, a convicted murderer currently serving two life sentences for the killings of his wife and son, has publicly criticized a new Hulu series about the tragic events, labeling it “inaccurate and misleading.”
The show, titled “Murdaugh: Death in the Family,” explores the high-profile case involving the deaths of Murdaugh’s wife, Maggie, and son, Paul. In response to the series, Murdaugh issued a strong statement expressing his dissatisfaction with the dramatization.
In the statement, released on behalf of Murdaugh after he was informed about the Hulu program, he expressed being “deeply disappointed and disturbed” by how the events were portrayed.
While Murdaugh himself likely doesn’t have access to Hulu while incarcerated, the statement suggests he learned about the series through reports he received.
His attorneys criticized the show for containing “numerous inaccuracies and misleading portrayals” that they argue distort the truth about Murdaugh’s life and relationships. They found the depiction of the family’s dynamics “particularly troubling.”
The statement emphasized that the series “mischaracterizes Alex’s relationships with his wife Maggie and his son Paul,” both of whom he reportedly “loved dearly.”
The eight-part Hulu series, produced with input from journalist Mandy Matney, dramatizes the downfall of South Carolina’s once-powerful legal dynasty.
Episode Six, ‘June 7,’ which airs this week, centers on the night in 2021 when Maggie and Paul were gunned down on the family’s Moselle estate – the murders that shattered the Murdaugh name and captivated audiences worldwide.
Murdaugh has condemned Hulu’s new true-crime drama accusing the streamer of spreading ‘inaccuracies and misleading portrayals’ about him and his slain wife and son
Jason Clarke stars as Murdaugh in the eight-part miniseries
While billed as a ‘dramatization inspired by true events,’ the show takes notable creative liberties.
Viewers see actor Jason Clarke portray Alex as an unstable patriarch, alternately violent, manipulative, and self-destructive opposite Patricia Arquette as Maggie.
A controversial scene showing the couple in bed has drawn outrage online, described by commenters as ‘disturbing’ and ‘gratuitous.’
The production invents dialogue and condenses timelines.Some characters are renamed while others are composites.
Murdaugh’s defense team says such changes cross ethical lines.
‘Any other portrayal of his feelings toward Paul and Maggie are baseless and false,’ the attorneys said. ‘Equally concerning is the lack of engagement by the producers or actors to understand the individuals portrayed.’
Murdaugh’s lawyers, Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin said neither Hulu nor the show’s creators sought input from Alex, his son Buster, or any relatives before airing the series.
‘No one from Hulu ever reached out to Alex, his son Buster, anyone in the Murdaugh family, or Alex’s attorneys to hear their perspective or verify the facts,’ the statement continued.
The real-life Murdaugh family are seen together, from left, brothers Buster and Paul Murdaugh, together with their parents Maggie and Alex Murdaugh
Jason Clarke stars as Murdaugh alongside Patricia Arquette as his wife, Maggie, seen left
Jason Clarke, left, who plays Alex and Johnny Berchtold, right, who stars as Paul Murdaught
Alex Murdaugh is pictured alongside his wife Maggie and two sons
‘Instead, the program appears to rely heavily on sensationalized accounts from secondary sources with no direct knowledge or relationship with him or his family.’
They urged viewers to approach the series ‘with the knowledge that it is not an accurate portrayal of Alex, his family, or the tragic events that it sensationalizes.’
Murdaugh was convicted on March 2, 2023, after a six-week televised trial in Walterboro, South Carolina, that drew global attention.
Prosecutors argued he killed Maggie and Paul to distract from a web of financial crimes and drug addiction. Murdaugh testified that he loved his family and insisted on his innocence.
He is now serving two consecutive life terms but has appealed his convictions to the South Carolina Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, he has admitted to stealing millions from his law firm and clients – crimes that also carry lengthy prison sentences.
The Hulu dramatization portrays Murdaugh’s relationship with his younger son Paul as volatile, even physical.
The family are seen in a Facebook photo from Thanksgiving 2018
Johnny Berchtold is seen in the Hulu miniseries as one of Alex’s sons, Paul
One scene shows him shoving Paul to the ground – a depiction his lawyers call fiction.
The series also emphasizes Alex’s addictions, with scenes of him slurring, falling asleep mid-meal, and drooling on himself.
Murdaugh acknowledged on the stand that he was abusing opioids during that time.
The Murdaugh family once reigned over South Carolina’s 14th Judicial Circuit for nearly a century, producing three generations of solicitors.
That lineage collapsed with Alex’s arrest and conviction, leaving the family name synonymous with corruption, deceit, and death.
