Netflix docuseries revisits Natalee Holloway case nearly 20 years later

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December 22, 2025

A new Netflix documentary series will revisit the disappearance of Natalee Holloway, the Mountain Brook teenager whose 2005 disappearance during a high school graduation trip to Aruba became one of the most closely followed missing-person cases in the world.

Nearly two decades later, the series brings renewed attention to a tragedy that began in Alabama and continues to resonate across the state. According to a press release, the documentary features Holloway’s mother, Beth Holloway, who recounts the events from the day her daughter vanished through later developments in the case, including a confession made years afterward.

Holloway, an 18-year-old Alabama native, disappeared on May 30, 2005, while traveling in Aruba with classmates following her graduation. Her disappearance sparked international media coverage and an extensive search effort, and she was later declared dead in 2012.

The three-part series, directed by Dani Sloane (The Menendez Brothers, Girl in the Picture) and Matthew Galkin (Murder in Big Horn, One Night In Idaho: The College Murders), recounts the case from its earliest days through later developments, telling the story through the perspectives of those closest to Holloway. The documentary includes previously unreleased material and revisits moments that shaped both the investigation and public understanding of the case.

The case returned to Alabama in 2023 when Joran van der Sloot was temporarily extradited from Peru to Birmingham to face federal fraud and extortion charges connected to Holloway’s disappearance. During those proceedings, van der Sloot admitted in an Oct. 18, 2023, proffer letter that he killed Holloway, marking the first time such an admission was made in the long-running case.

Produced by Story Syndicate, the Netflix series examines the lasting impact of the case on Holloway’s family and the broader public. Netflix has not yet announced a release date.

Sherri Blevins is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You may contact her at [email protected].