The Gist Murdaugh Showrunner Michael D. Fuller: Power Metastasizes
18 snips
Dec 1, 2025 Michael D. Fuller, a South Carolina television showrunner and lead writer of Hulu's Murdaugh: Death in the Family, dives into the complexities of adapting true crime for scripted drama. He explains how storytelling can reveal deeper human emotions and messy family dynamics that starkly contrast with traditional legal narratives. Fuller also discusses the challenge of condensing the Murdaugh saga into eight episodes, emphasizing themes of privilege, power, and the ambiguity surrounding motives in such a tangled case.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Condensing A Century Of Legacy
- Fuller says the Murdoch legacy goes back a hundred years and the full story could span multiple seasons.
- He and his team condensed sprawling history into eight focused episodes to dramatize how the events culminated.
The Housekeeper Plot's Cold Surprise
- Fuller describes the Gloria Satterfield episode as unexpected yet organically revealing of Alec's moral rot.
- He dramatized how Alec exploited a longtime housekeeper's death to show deeper cruelty within familial trust.
Simpler Is Better For Complex Fraud
- Fuller says simpler dramatization worked better than flashy montages when showing financial crimes.
- He advises focusing on clarity and restraint to explain complex fraud without confusing viewers.