'Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer' dives deep into the world of crime-solving innovations

From the Fanning sisters comes 'Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer,' how a female FBI agent changed crime fighting as we know it.

ByAmy Becker OTRC logo
Tuesday, June 4, 2024
'Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer:' Fanning sisters' new docu-series
"Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer" dives deep into the world of crime-solving innovations with Dr. Ann Burgess, the hidden figure who changed the FBI.

LOS ANGELES -- From executive producers Dakota and Elle Fanning comes the new docu-series "Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer."

The series offers a fascinating new perspective on the woman who learned to think like a serial-killer, radically changing the investigative landscape of serial killers in the '70s, '80s and '90s.

The show follows Dr. Ann Burgess, who, at the time, was the only woman working in the FBI.

As the amount of active serial killers in America rose, Dr. Burgess' expertise was called upon.

"I was a professor of nursing at Boston College, working with patients with traumatic experiences. One day, I got a phone call from the FBI," she described.

Burgess would interview infamous serial-killers such as Ted Bundy, Montie Rissell and Ed Kemper. She went on to say, "The problem was, we had to make sense out of the interviews. I started listening to the tapes, and what I found was fascinating."

As Burgess studied the tapes, she found "patterns I'd never noticed before," and the program began expanding with cases around the country.

Dr. Burgess and her innovations in the crime hunting world changed history forever.

"Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer" premieres with all three episodes July 11 on Hulu.

The Walt Disney Company is the parent company of Hulu and this ABC station.