From documentary Maternal Instinct (2026) has been available on Netflix since today and is already making waves among viewers. Reactions flood in on social media and one word recurs remarkably often: ‘disturbed’. Many viewers describe the story as barely comprehensible and say they will think about the documentary for a long time. Netflix seems similar The Crash (2026) to once again have a true crime gem in its hands.
All lies
Maternal Instinct tells the true story of Taylor Parker, a Texas woman who committed one of the most shocking crimes in recent years in 2020. The documentary follows the events that ultimately led to the death of her pregnant friend Reagan Simmons-Hancock. What seems to surprise viewers most is the way Parker maintained a carefully constructed web of lies for months. While people around her believed that she herself was pregnant, it later turned out that a large part of her story was fabricated. The documentary shows how various people involved subsequently recognized signals that seemed innocent at the time.
The perpetrator is deliberately not central
Director Jessica Dimmock chose not to focus on the perpetrator, but rather on the people who were affected by the tragedy. Parker’s former partner and Reagan’s family, among others, are extensively interviewed. Their personal stories provide a compelling picture of the consequences that events have had to this day.
7.5 Watch on Netflix • When a Texas state police trooper stopped a woman driving erratically on the highway in 2020, she claimed to have just given birth — but her story didn’t add up.
Beeld: Still ‘Maternal Instinct’ via TMDb
