HBO’s Iconic True Crime Doc The Jinx Returns For Part Two
If you love true crime, then the return of HBO’s The Jinx this month should definitely be on your radar. The follow-up to the original from 2015, The Jinx: Part Two, released its first episode on streaming earlier this week.
It continues to follow the world of Robert Durst, a real estate heir suspected of murdering his wife and several others, and spawned one of the most talked about documentaries in recent memory. In a year that’s already seen the release of Netflix’s Lover, Stalker, Killer and a new season of iconic crime podcast Serial, The Jinx Part Two might be the most enthralling true crime series yet in 2024.
What is The Jinx about?
The first season of The Jinx aired on HBO close to a decade ago now, coming at the start of the modern true crime boom. What made it stick out, though, and become one of the best-reviewed documentaries of the 2010s was its subject, Robert Durst, a New York City real estate heir. If you’ve not seen The Jinx and are interested in watching, then be warned that this article contains plenty of spoilers.
Durst had become a suspect in a growing number of cases over the years, including the disappearance of his wife Kathleen in 1981 and the deaths of Susan Berman and Morris Black in the early 2000s. The Jinx set out to investigate and examine these cases, interviewing Durst and putting the pieces together as to what went on. But the series, with its HBO prestige, ended up becoming a unique phenomenon when he ended up confessing to the crimes on camera- “Killed them all, of course”- and eventually being arrested the day before the final episode aired.
Part Two comes in 2024, once again directed by series creator Andrew Jarecki, with much having developed since then- not least Durst’s death in prison after being convicted in 2021. However, there’s still more to be unearthed in the case despite this, and the new season continues the story left off from Season 1.
The murderer is shown early on reacting himself to the events of the original show, and we get a glimpse at how the new found scrutiny affects him. There are also insights into how the various other people connected to the case, including the investigators and victims’ families, reacted to the confession in Season 1, so it’s quite a retrospective look back on the show itself. Meanwhile, The Jinx Part Two also clarifies the circumstances around Durst’s arrest, and then focuses prominently on his trial, conviction and his last days in prison, having been given a life sentence.
What else do we know, and where can I watch?
You’ll find that Robert Durst is still the often confounding figure that he always was, especially since it feels unnervingly like he could’ve never been charged and imprisoned had he not made apparently obvious mistakes that would lead to his ultimate downfall. You can see how it all unfolds by watching the series weekly on Monday nights (the first episode is available now) on Sky Showcase, NOW and Apple TV.
