Is Missing: Dead or Alive on Netflix a real docuseries?

True crime fans who spend their evenings perusing Netflix for any new docuseries or crime thrillers to check out have no doubt already started watching Missing: Dead or Alive. The four-episode series follows investigators in South Carolina who work missing persons cases, showing the lengths they go to try and solve the mysteries. The series debuted on the platform on Wednesday, May 10, and viewers are already asking if more episodes might be coming out.

While we don’t know whether or not Netflix will renew the series or opt to add more episodes of Missing: Dead or Alive, we understand the question. It’s easy to be on the edge of your seat while watching the cases unfold and hoping for the best. As the officers explain, they’re passionate about missing persons cases because they feel like they can save people. There’s always a chance the person is still alive somewhere, and they’re determined to make sure they’re found.

Given the way Missing: Dead or Alive is filmed, viewers are also wondering if it’s actually real. The series is a little different than other docuseries on Netflix, as the cameras actually follow the investigators in real time as they’re investigating the cases. Whereas other true crime documentaries examine cases when the crime has already happened and is potentially solved, Missing: Dead Alive follows the officers as they first learn about the missing person and shows their process as they work. It’s more of a reality TV style.

Is Missing: Dead or Alive staged?

To our knowledge, Missing: Dead or Alive is not staged and is totally true. It follows the Richland County Sheriff’s Department Missing Persons Unit in Columbia, South Carolina. Netflix is billing the show as a true crime docuseries, and all of their coverage of Missing: Dead or Alive has suggested it’s real.

You can even find posts about one of the main investigators from the series, Vicki Rains, shared on the Richland County Sheriff’s Department’s Facebook page, indicating she’s a real officer working at a real department in South Carolina. At this point, we have no reason to believe Missing: Dead or Alive is staged, but if we find out information that goes against that, we’ll be sure to update this post.

All four episodes of Missing: Dead or Alive are now streaming on Netflix.