Is Netflix’s ‘The Watcher’ Based on a True Story

Ryan Murphy’s upcoming Netflix series The Watcher focus on a rich family who become the targets of a mysterious stalker who calls themselves ‘the Watcher.’ In the upcoming television series, married couple Nora and Dean Brannock will be followed as they settle into their dream house in Westfield, a picture-perfect suburb. However, after spending all of their savings to complete the transaction, they quickly came to the conclusion that the area is “less than inviting.”  Margo Martindale, Bobby Cannavale, Naomi Watts, and other A-list actors appear in The Watcher. However, viewers have expressed interest in learning more about the story. Is it a completely made-up story or is it based on true events? (tvacute.com) Here is all the information you require if you’re wondering whether Netflix’s ‘The Watcher’’ is based on a true story.

Is Lifetime’s “The Gabby Petito Story” based on a true Story?
Is Westfield’s 657 Boulevard a Real House? Who now resides there?

Is Netflix’s ‘The Watcher’ Based on a True Story

Yes, Netflix’s ‘The Watcher’ is Based on a True Story. The story of “The Watcher,” which garnered worldwide attention, started in 2014 when Derek and Maria Broaddus paid $1.3 million for the 1905 Dutch colonial with the intention of raising their three children there. they had anticipated it would become their ideal house, but as remodeling  home got underway before they were set to move in, they got a startling letter addressed to “The New Owner.” 

The names and last names of the Broadduses have been altered as part of the disturbing story’s alterations made by Netflix. They only have two kids in the television series, and they seem to be older than the Broadduses were when they initially moved into the house. To find out if the program resolves the mystery around the Watcher’s identity or leaves it open, we’ll have to wait till it airs. Similarly to Dahmer, the series is based on a true storyInterested in learning the complete story of Derek and Maria Broaddus

What happened to Derek and Maria Broaddus?

 Derek and Maria Broaddus

The Watcher chronicles the real-life experiences of Derek and Maria Broaddus, a married couple who in 2014 purchased a six-bedroom home at 657 Boulevard in the New Jersey neighborhood of Westfield. they were ready to take on some house improvements and perhaps cope with a few obnoxious neighbors. Instead, they encountered a nightmare that seemed to have sprung right out of a horror film. The first letter from The Watcher, a mysterious someone who claimed to “be in charge of observing” the couple’s new home, arrived three days after they bought the property. The letter and the ones that came after it only got spookier. The Watcher indicated that something was concealed beneath the walls of 657 Boulevard and that the home yearned for “new blood,” alluding to the three children of the Broaddus. Additionally, this unidentified source warned the Broadduses against upsetting 657 Boulevard with their home improvement work, stating, “You don’t want to make 657 Boulevard angry.” Before finishing, this first letter gave various data about this family that may be identified: “There are hundreds and hundreds of cars that travel by 657 Boulevard every day. Maybe I belong to one. From 657 Boulevard, have a look at all the windows that are visible. Maybe I belong to one. View the daily parade of pedestrians outside any of the many windows at 657 Boulevard. I might be one.

Is Netflix's ‘The Watcher’ Based on a True Story

The Watcher wrote the Broaddus family three letters in total. The family discovered when they looked into these strange happenings that this person had also written letters to the former owners of the house, John and Andrea Woods, as well as to another family residing nearby. The Woodes and this unidentified neighbor also disposed of their letters without giving them any thought. The Broadduses discovered more strange details when they dug deeper, though. As an illustration, a couple who lived behind 657 Boulevard kept two lawn chairs suspiciously close to their boundary. Stranger still, those chairs faced 657 Boulevard. They began to think that their main suspect was one of their neighbours, Michael Langford, who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia. They also started to have doubts about a man who lived nearby and played “some extremely dark computer games,” according to his girlfriend.

When the Broadduses went to the police, they were warned not to discuss the contents of the letters with their neighbors since they thought it was most probable that one of them had sent them. Due to the location of his family’s property and the perception of his family as odd, Michael Langford in particular was suspected after an investigation. After he was subsequently exonerated, the Broadduses engaged a private investigator to look into the neighborhood. They got three letters in total, the second of which contained facts they claim could only have been noticed by someone who had been inside the home or very close to it and which identified their children by name and nickname.

The Broadduses learned that the Woods, the home’s previous occupants, had also received a letter soon before they left but had experienced no problems during the 23 years they had lived there prior as they pursued their hunt for the Watcher. The Broadduses later tried to sue the Wood family for failing to disclose that they had received a letter, but the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed because they never actually moved into the house and instead chose to rent it out. But by then, word of the Watcher had reached beyond the immediate area. Many hypotheses surfaced, with some, like some Westfield residents, alleging the Broadduses had mailed the letters to themselves in an effort to recoup financial losses after feeling buyer’s remorse, while others said the Watcher must reside within the house’s walls. In 2019, when it was purchased for $400,000 less than the Broadduses paid for it, they eventually sold the house. Despite numerous police and former FBI agents recruited by the Broadusses investigations, the Watcher was never located and is still unnamed today.

What differentiates the television show from reality?

The Watcher fictionalizes various aspects of the true story despite being based on it; for example, the Broaddus family never settled in 657 Boulevard while the Brannock family does. In the series, the house is listed for $3.2 million, which puts a significant strain on the Brannocks’ finances, although in real life, it was purchased for $1.35 million.

First Published: Published on: Sep 27, 2022 at 19:22

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Olivia Wilson
Olivia Wilsonhttps://www.tvacute.com/
Olivia Wilson is the senior news writer for TV Acute. She spends too much money on collectables and is enamored with movies, comics, and television series. She loves binge-watching and can spend hours talking about movies and TV shows. She can immerse herself into a good story no matter the genre or form and only come out from it when she's had her fill. When she's not writing, she's probably cooking or exploring new places. You can follow her daily exploits on Twitter and Facebook.

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