Feature Story Breaking Betty

True crime fans are in for a treat with the new season of Dirty John, which takes a look at the infamous case of socialite Betty Broderick, writes Emily Colston.

A fter Eric Bana and Connie Britton captivated audiences with the real-life story of John Meehan and

Debra Newell, whose twisted romantic relationship ended about as badly as it possibly could, Dirty John showrunner Alexandra Cunningham is back with a new tale of love gone horrifically wrong.

For the second season Cunningham has turned her focus to the story of Betty and Dan Broderick (played by Amanda Peet and Christian Slater), whose seemingly perfect life in 1980s California with their four kids proved to be anything but after Dan left his wife for his secretary.

The Brodericks’ bitter divorce made headlines, as did the bloody ending to their story.

But Cunningham is more interested in how they got there, and she lays out their sorry story over decades in two timelines: one showing their happier past, the other their miserable present.

Peet explained in a recent interview that Cunningham was interested in exploring what could drive someone insane.

“They appeared to be such an average, suburban American family,” she said.

“And yet the story ended up being so violent and tragic.

“I think Alexandra feels that there’s value in exploring how and why – how could that have happened? A lot of women can identify with that aspect of the Betty Broderick story – the idea that you gave yourself to being a mum and a wife, and then the rug

Hell hath no fury: Amanda Peet plays convicted murderer Betty Broderick in Dirty John.

was taken out from under you.”

It doesn’t help that there was a history of abuse on both sides of the relationship, but back then mental health issues were commonly swept under the rug.

“She really behaved in an abusive way for a long time and so did he,” Peet said. “Hopefully in today’s day and age someone would have intervened.”

It doesn’t help that Dan Broderick was a master manipulator.

“(It) really is a gaslighting story. It’s one of those stories where there’s just so much psychological insanity going on and so many lies being told,” Slater said in a recent interview.

“Really putting a woman in that kind of position where she needs to question every possible thing is just torturous.”

Peet agrees. “It’s this idea of gaslighting where you smell smoke and everyone around you is like, ‘There’s no fire. You’re crazy. You’re seeing and hearing things that aren’t there.’ If you’re isolated enough, you might start to believe it’s true. A lot of it had to do with her inability to find any outlet outside the marriage … Alexandra really captured what it feels like when someone tells you you’re paranoid again and again over time. You start to believe it.”

While Peet said she didn’t want to dig too deep into

reports of the crime, or meet Broderick in person, what she learnt from Cunningham’s script quickly changed her preconceptions of her character.

“From outside the situation, she was a murderer to me,”

Peet said.

“Once I was on the inside, she was a person in dire straits who had all her eggs in one basket, had no psychotherapeutic resources, and had the rug pulled out from under her in the most fundamental, visceral way.

“I don’t excuse the fact that she murdered an innocent woman and the father of her children. But the cards were really stacked against Betty from the beginning.”

Amanda Peet: The cards were really stacked against Betty from the beginning.

Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story, streaming on Netflix from Friday