The Staircase
Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker, Jean-Xavier de Lestrade, presents a gripping courtroom thriller, offering a rare and revealing inside look at a high-profile murder trial. In 2001, author Michael Peterson was arraigned for the murder of his wife Kathleen, whose body was discovered lying in a pool of blood on the stairway of their home. Granted unusual access to Peterson's lawyers, home and immediate family, de Lestrade's cameras capture the defense team as it considers its strategic options. The series is an engrossing look at contemporary American justice that features more twists than a legal bestseller.
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Search on JustWatchOK for ages 12+, with caveats: moderate violence, moderate language
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Is "The Staircase" appropriate for children?
ValorScore's Content Advisory for "The Staircase" is "Moderate" (33/100), measuring sex, violence, language, and drug use. See the full per-axis breakdown below to decide if it fits your family.
See the per-axis breakdownDoes "The Staircase" have woke/ideological content?
In ValorScore's editorial reading, "The Staircase" has ideological presence rated "Clean". This is editorial opinion, not a verdict — see the axes and their evidence in the breakdown below. The overall ValorScore (cleanliness + value + audience rating) is 88/100. See every axis and its evidence in the breakdown below.
See the per-axis breakdownScores reflect community and AI analysis as opinion with evidence — not a factual verdict.
Per-axis score breakdown
Axes on a 0–10 scale (the score at the top of the page runs 0 to 100).
AI analysis · reviewed by the community · How we calculate the scores
Ideological reading (editorial opinion)
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