Free UK Delivery on Eligible Orders
Search results
The Staircase: Created by Antonio Campos. With Colin Firth, Toni Collette, Michael Stuhlbarg, Patrick Schwarzenegger. Tells the story of Michael Peterson, a crime novelist accused of killing his wife Kathleen after she is found dead at the bottom of a staircase in their home, and the 16-year judicial battle that followed.
- (35K)
- 2022-05-05
- Biography, Crime, Drama
- 65
The Staircase is an American biographical crime drama television miniseries created by Antonio Campos, based on the 2004 true crime docuseries of the same name created by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade. The series stars Colin Firth as Michael Peterson , a writer convicted of murdering his wife Kathleen Peterson ( Toni Collette ), who was found dead at the bottom of the staircase in their home.
Based on a true story, The Staircase explores the life of Michael Peterson (Colin Firth), his sprawling North Carolina family, and the suspicious death of hi...
- 2 min
- 766.7K
- Max
After the mysterious death of his wife, author Michael Peterson watches his life go under the microscope. Watch trailers & learn more.
- 1
- 2 min
- June 8, 2018
- Is The Staircase Based on A True Story?
- The Initial Charge
- Another Staircase Death
- Michael's Sexuality
- The Defence Case
- The Alford Plea
- The Owl Theory
In the early hours of the morning on 9th December 2001, Michael Petersonfound his wife, Kathleen, at the bottom of the stairs in their family home in North Carolina. He called the emergency services saying that she was still alive and begging them to arrive with the greatest of urgency, but dialling back shortly after he reported that she had stopp...
The medical examiner who conducted the post-mortem on Kathleen was alarmed by several findings, most notable of which were the deep lacerations on her scalp which weren't consistent with a typical fall down the stairs. In addition, it was found that her blood alcohol content at the time of death was low enough to pass a breathalyser test, which it ...
Further complicating matters was the revelation that, during a period living in Germany many years earlier, one of Peterson's close friends had also been discovered dead at the bottom of her own staircase. At the time, it had been thought that Elizabeth Ratliff – whose two daughters Michael became legal guardian of – had suffered a stroke on the st...
In the wake of Kathleen's death, authorities examined Michael's computer and found 2000 pornographic images of men on the hard drive, in addition to correspondence with a male prostitute with whom he discussed meeting. According to sex worker Brad, the hook-up never went ahead, but the conversation alone was enough for the prosecution to argue that...
In addition to emphasising the strength of Michael and Kathleen's relationship (and therefore lack of motive), defence lawyer David Rudolf brought in his own expert to give his analysis of the staircase scene. Neuropathologist Dr Jan Leestma argued that Kathleen's injuries could well have been sustained in an accidental fall, noting that the lack o...
A retrial was eventually ordered in 2011, after a blood spatter analyst for the prosecution was found to have given misleading testimony in the initial hearing. Some six years later, Peterson and Rudolf submitted an "Alford plea" of voluntary manslaughter, which allows the defendant to continue asserting their innocence, while conceding that there ...
As Peterson maintains his innocence to this very day, it is still unclear what exactly happened to Kathleen Peterson that fateful night in December 2001. One theory that emerged in 2009 and has captured the imagination of true crime fans is that she was attacked by a barred owl– a common species in Durham, North Carolina – with evidence at the scen...
The Staircase is dark psychological thriller, which asks what some people are prepared to do for love. May 21, 2023. There are too many characters and plot twists to worry about style or to ...
People also ask
Who wrote 'the staircase'?
Is the staircase based on a true story?
Is the staircase a good movie?
What is the staircase about?
Apr 21, 2022 · There is no truth without lies…#TheStaircase coming 5 May on Sky Atlantic.The Staircase stars Colin Firth, Toni Collette, Michael Stuhlbarg, Juliette Binoche...
- 3 min
- 35.9K
- Sky TV
