What makes something an “American” crime? It’s a question that’s inadvertently surfaced in true crime entertainment lately.

The trend started with the twin pillars of O.J. Simpson television projects in 2016 — American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson, Ryan Murphy’s fictionalized account of the 1995 trial, and the documentary series O.J.: Made in America. Since then, we’ve seen a number of true crime shows — most docuseries, but scripted ones too — being given the title “American [X].”

Netflix has been especially keen on the naming trend recently. There’s 2023’s Waco: American Apocalypse, about the deadly Branch Davidian siege in Texas in 1993. Last year’s American Conspiracy delved into a gnarly conspiracy theory linked to the death of a freelance journalist in West Virginia in the early ’90s. American Nightmare told the horrific story of a woman’s encounter with cops who refused to believe her abduction had been real.

In addition to American Crime Story, which also aired seasons about the murder of Gianni Versace and the Clinton impeachment scandal, there are the other “American” series. American Murder has so far covered the killings of three different women (Shanann Watts, Laci Peterson, and Gabby Petito), while American Manhunt has looked at the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing, O.J. Simpson from Bronco chase to

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