The Staircase
The Staircase is an eight-episode American true crime drama limited series created by Antonio Campos for HBO Max, starring Colin Firth as Michael Peterson and Toni Collette as Kathleen Peterson, which dramatizes the life of Peterson, his North Carolina family, and the suspicious 2001 death of his wife at the bottom of a staircase in their Durham home.1 • 2 It is a scripted adaptation of the documentary series of the same name by French filmmaker Jean-Xavier de Lestrade.3
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | Eight-episode Max Original limited series, TV-MA, crime/drama1 • 4 |
| Release | Debuted Thursday, May 5, 2022 with three episodes, followed by one new episode weekly through June 91 |
| Creator | Antonio Campos, who wrote and executive produced with Maggie Cohn; both served as showrunners; Campos directed six episodes and Leigh Janiak two1 |
| Production | Co-produced by HBO Max and Annapurna Television, in association with EMI Pop and What's Up Films; shot in Atlanta in early June 20215 • 6 • 7 |
| Source material | Jean-Xavier de Lestrade's Peabody-winning documentary series, originally aired in 2004 with updates added in 2013 and 2018, across 13 episodes2 |
| Reception | 92% Tomatometer from 72 critics and 59% Popcornmeter from 250+ audience ratings on Rotten Tomatoes8 |
| Awards | Two 2022 Primetime Emmy nominations, for Colin Firth and Toni Collette as Outstanding Lead Actor and Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie6 |
Spoilers
Cast and characters
Colin Firth plays Michael Peterson and Toni Collette plays Kathleen Peterson. Around them, the cast includes:1 • 10
- Michael Stuhlbarg as David Rudolf, Peterson's defense attorney10
- Patrick Schwarzenegger as Todd Peterson and Dane DeHaan as Clayton Peterson, Michael's sons10
- Sophie Turner as Margaret Ratliff and Odessa Young as Martha Ratliff, Michael's adopted daughters10
- Olivia DeJonge as Caitlin Atwater, Kathleen's biological daughter10
- Rosemarie DeWitt as Candace Zamperini, Kathleen's sister3
- Parker Posey as Freda Black11
- Juliette Binoche as the documentary's film editor, a character the drama folds into its story of how the documentary itself was made12
The true story behind the series
The series is inspired by the case of Michael Peterson, a writer and one-time mayoral candidate in Durham, North Carolina. His wife Kathleen died at the bottom of the staircase of their home in December 2001 in what Peterson claimed was an accidental fall; he was charged with her murder and convicted in 2003.2 • 9 The case and its television treatments stirred internet debate over the so-called "owl theory," an alternative explanation in which Kathleen died from an owl attack at the bottom of the stairs.9
The documentary predecessor, directed by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade, traces the legal saga from the death through the trial, combining vérité footage with one-on-one interviews, and presents the case as a study in ambiguity rather than moving toward a definitive conclusion.2
Production and release
HBO Max ordered the drama as a limited series co-produced with Annapurna Television, written and executive produced by showrunners Antonio Campos and Maggie Cohn, with Campos directing six of the eight episodes and Leigh Janiak directing the other two.5 • 1 Filming took place in Atlanta in early June 2021.7 The series premiered on May 5, 2022 with three episodes and ran weekly through June 9.1 It later became available on Netflix as well as HBO Max.4
Relationship to the documentary
Unlike its documentary predecessor, the drama revisits the Peterson trial while also depicting the making of de Lestrade's documentary and exploring parts of the family's story that never appeared in that series.2 De Lestrade is portrayed by Vincent Vermignon, his producer Denis Poncet by Frank Feys, and the film editor by Juliette Binoche.12 Peterson's real attorney David Rudolf accused the series of "turning truth into fiction."13
Where de Lestrade could not offer Kathleen's perspective, the drama assembles a portrait of her through flashbacks drawing on interviews with people who knew her, independent research, and imaginative hypotheses, with Toni Collette in the role.2
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes the limited series holds a 92% Tomatometer from 72 reviews and a 59% Popcornmeter audience score from more than 250 ratings; the critics consensus says the drama brings "a fresh perspective and texture to the mystery" along with "a terrific performance by Colin Firth," while noting it holds few surprises for viewers already familiar with the documentary.8 At release, Axios reported the HBO show at a 95% Rotten Tomatoes rating against 94% for the docuseries.9
The series received two Primetime Emmy nominations in 2022, for Firth and Collette in the lead acting categories for a limited or anthology series.6 IMDb lists 24 nominations overall, including a 2023 Golden Globe nomination for Firth, a 2023 Satellite Award nomination for Collette, a 2023 Writers Guild of America nomination for the limited series writing team, and a 2023 Artios Award nomination for its casting.14
References
- Max Original Limited Series THE STAIRCASE Debuts May 5, Warner Bros. Discovery Pressroom
- HBO Max's The Staircase Is So Much More Than a Rehash of the Classic True-Crime Docuseries, Time
- The Staircase: True Story, Cast, Plot, Where to Stream, Netflix Tudum
- The Staircase (2022), Rotten Tomatoes
- HBO Max adapts Staircase as drama, C21Media
- The Staircase, Emmy Awards and Nominations, Television Academy
- The Staircase, Production Listing, Backstage
- The Staircase: Limited Series, Rotten Tomatoes
- New HBO true crime series "The Staircase" portrays Charlotte lawyer David Rudolf, Axios Charlotte
- The Staircase Trailer: Colin Firth Is Michael Peterson in HBO Max Series, TheWrap
- The Staircase (2022), HBO Max Miniseries, TV Insider
- The Staircase Is Respectable Crime Drama At Its Addictive Best, Vogue
- The Staircase on ITVX: Controversial drama free-to-air for first time, TVGuide.co.uk
- The Staircase (TV Mini Series 2022), Awards, IMDb
Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Drama and prestige series (individual series) › Crime and thriller series › Psychological and domestic thrillers
Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026
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