Apple TV+ has announced a new four-part series for true-crime fans from Emmy-nominated filmmakers James Lee Hernandez and Brian Lazarte. The Big Conn follows big-shot Kentucky lawyer Eric C. Conn, one of the biggest fraudsters in U.S. history, and the incredible story behind his half-billion-dollar Social Security scam. Conn’s massive con was the largest theft of government money through the Social Security program, landing him in jail for 12 years with an additional 15 years added after his attempt to flee the country. The docuseries will premiere on May 5 on Apple TV+ alongside a companion podcast that further delves into Conn and details his extravagant lifestyle.
Where the series will be a more straightforward look into the massive scheme, the companion podcast promises more supplementary material including interviews and other behind-the-scenes information that couldn’t make the film. The Apple TV+ Original podcast will be available on Apple Podcasts, but there’s little other information about the show.
Hernandez and Lazarte will write and direct The Big Conn, joining forces once more after creating their breakthrough HBO miniseries McMillions. Hernandez has mostly worked on short films and documentaries, though his most-recent effort has been for the 2020 crime drama Going Rogue. He also served as an editor on the Daytime Emmy-winning documentary Wonder Women from 2016. Lazarte, meanwhile, has done the vast majority of his work in the editing department, with credits on the Katy Perry documentary Part of Me, the Foo Fighters‘ 20th-anniversary film Sonic Highways, and American obesity documentary Fed Up.
Before it streams worldwide, The Big Conn will get an early screening at SXSW on March 16 at the Paramount Theatre. The first two episodes of the series will be shown off first before Hernandez and Lazarte take questions from the audience about the show. The series is produced by FunMeter with fellow documentarian Peter King joining Hernandez and Lazarte as an executive producer. Matt Kaye and Shannon Pence will co-executive produce.
The Big Conn is just the latest in a long line of docuseries to come into the Apple TV+ fold. It joins a slate of upcoming new series including They Call Me Magic, The Supermodels, and Number One on the Call Sheet. The new companion podcast isn’t a first for the streamer either as it’s provided supplementary audio shows for Foundation and For All Mankind.
The Big Conn and its unnamed companion podcast debut globally on their respective Apple platforms on May 5.
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