On August 2, 2006, Robert Wone, a married 32-year-old lawyer, decides to spend the evening at his pals’ home in Washington D.C. Shortly thereafter, one of many pals calls 911 saying Wone has been stabbed to loss of life. What occurred throughout that 79-minute time-frame in the home? Who murdered Wone?
In tackling a case with extra questions than solutions, director Jared P. Scott (Requiem for the American Dream) examines the homicide and searches for the reality within the Peacock docuseries Who Killed Robert Wone? By way of interviews with pals, household, and investigators, Scott units out to seek out solutions in a Clue-like homicide thriller. Because the collection dives additional into the case, Scott discovers the identical challenges that puzzled investigators over 15 years in the past.
In an interview with Digital Tendencies, Scott discusses what drew him to the case, methods to steadiness information with leisure, and the way the collection sheds mild on a heartbreaking tragedy.
Be aware: This interview has been edited for size and readability.
Digital Tendencies: What drew you to the Robert Wone case?
Jared P. Scott: You recognize, I can’t say that I’m a real crime fan. I like a very good story. This occurs to be a real crime, and it occurs to be a captivating story. It’s a type of tales that you could possibly begin telling on the bar. I consider Looking for Sugar Man, the place you don’t even should make a present about it. You possibly can simply begin speaking to any person about this, and one’s jaw slowly begins dropping.
Right here you’ve Robert Wone, a 32-year-old distinguished lawyer, a promising younger man, [who] decides to spend the evening with three pals. Seventy-nine minutes after arriving at his pals’ home, a type of pals calls 911 saying he’s been stabbed. Then from there, the EMTs arrive, and so they describe this odd conduct. The detectives arrive, and one of many first stuff you hear is that these three guys are in white robes. Because the prosecutor describes it, “It seems like they’ve simply stepped out of an govt steam. They acquired their hair slicked again.”
So this imaginative and prescient of three guys in a home with white robes, proper there, the intrigue is there. The stage is about, and it’s this Clue-like thriller. You had 4 folks in the home that evening. One particular person finally ends up useless after 79 minutes, and the opposite three are saying, “Not me.” It’s a traditional black field thriller.
I feel everyone loves a homicide thriller, in order that drove me to it. I feel the opposite aspect of that coin can be to hunt reality and justice for Robert Wone. Most of my movies have been about injustice, about inequality. The thought of making an attempt to carry any person accountable for this tragic loss of life is essential. That’s a part of our cost on this style. Sure, we entertain, however we additionally search to attempt to make clear one thing, convey this to a nationwide or world scale the place somebody may come ahead and provides us a tip, give us a clue, [and] assist us work out what could have occurred that evening.
You speak in regards to the true crime style and the way you’re not significantly a fan of it, however as I’m certain you understand, the style has seen a resurgence in reputation in recent times with numerous reveals and flicks. How do you suppose your docuseries differs from the entire others on the market?
That’s a very good query. I need to add one correction. It’s not that I’m not a fan. It’s simply I’m not a die-hard. Once more, I similar to good tales, and I feel it is a nice story. I feel that we advised it properly. We went to nice lengths to seek out steadiness. We went to nice lengths to attempt to not overspeculate. This case is [filled with] wild hypothesis. We actually needed to rein ourselves in as a result of, once more, nobody is aware of what occurred throughout these 79 minutes apart from the three guys [who] have been there, and all we’ve on report are their interrogations the evening of [the death].
Actually, it’s all hypothesis, so I feel there was some humility there. We needed to be disciplined and considerate and do proper. We needed to do our due diligence, and I feel we did that properly. We went to nice lengths to not attempt to revictimize Robert. Once more, it’s a loopy story. It’s a baffling story. It’s a stranger than fiction story. That’s a part of the attraction. However we tried to not . . . it wasn’t salacious simply to be salacious. It wasn’t that we have been making an attempt to dig into something and overhype it. In a narrative like this, you don’t should. It’s loopy sufficient by itself.
You truly may be very sober as a storyteller as a result of no embellishment is required. It’s only a wild experience, anyway. I feel that we wished to make it possible for we stroll that line in a considerate approach. However I do suppose it’s a extra entertaining true crime than quite a bit I’ve seen. Oftentimes, folks simply make them as a result of folks watch the style, however I feel that is only a good story. Whether or not you’re a fan of the true crime style or whether or not you similar to good tales, it’s value watching.
You answered my subsequent query, which is the way you straddle the road between making one thing that’s informative and true to the information, but in addition accessible and engrossing. I feel this is likely one of the most cinematic true crime collection I’ve seen, and I feel it’s very respectful of the topic.
I recognize that, Jason. I’m glad that I used to be in a position to guess your subsequent query. I’m going to do this proper now, too. Luke Geissbuhler, who’s the [director of photography] on this (he was additionally the DP on the Borat movies), has accomplished numerous nice stuff. There’s a sure integrity that we wished to convey to this piece. After all, we would like it to be cinematic.
We’re finally taking all these totally different items, proper? You’ve got crime scene pictures. You’ve got main supply paperwork with the affidavit. You’ve got recreations. You’ve got interviews. You’ve got different photos. I at all times need to attempt to make these cohesive. It doesn’t should really feel like a mishmash of items. The docuseries has to really feel like a really cohesive, deliberate, thought-about mosaic, and I feel we have been in a position to seize that. Once more, we have been in a position to lean into the themes of this not possible puzzle. There’s at all times one thing lacking. Issues aren’t including up. Issues aren’t what they appear, and you’ll see that threaded all through the graphics.
You’re solely pretty much as good as the weather you’ve. You’re solely pretty much as good because the story you’ve, and you need to maximize all that. I feel our “characters” have been nice. They’re likable. They’re considerate. They’re insightful. Robert’s pals are heartwarming. There’s a lot empathy there too. There’s additionally some levity once you want it. Everybody must snort typically in a thriller. Craig [Brownstein] and David [Greer], our bloggers, convey that. Generally, you need to snort simply to ease the stress or help within the stress.
I feel all that provides to that cinematic really feel. It’s not simply what comes out of the digital camera. Additionally, Tyler Strickland did the music, and the music is basically cinematic. I do know that phrase will get overused, however I do imagine that’s the case. It’s additionally how we weave all of it collectively, [and] it’s how we glue it collectively. I recognize you choosing up on that as a result of we labored exhausting to make that occur. Additionally, one other great point is we had entry to the mannequin home. It was one thing that we didn’t make for the present. That was the precise [model] home utilized by the prosecution in the course of the trial.
Oh, wow. That’s wonderful.
Yeah. I imply the truth that it’s nonetheless round 12 years after the trial was exceptional. We truly wished to come up with far more proof, however weren’t in a position to. The truth that we acquired that, and we have been in a position to shoot that in such a gorgeous approach, that turns into such a gorgeous, visible via line for us to form of return to.
As a result of once more, what occurred in these 79 minutes in that home? At first, you’re feeling like that may be constricting as a storyteller. It’s not like this occurred in a cabin within the woods, and you’ll shoot these nice Ozark sorts of landscapes. It’s a small row home in Washington D.C. We wished to lean into that, and I feel we have been in a position to make that small side, that tight side, really feel huge and really feel mysterious.
In making the docuseries, what was essentially the most surprising factor you found in regards to the case?
That’s a tricky query as a result of there are such a lot of surprising issues, however I’ve sieved via it a lot, and I’ve lived and breathed it, that possibly nothing was surprising to me. It’s all been form of alchemized now within the story. One of many issues that offers me pause is likely one of the issues our interviewees, Craig and David, mentioned. They posed the speculation that possibly the entire sexual assault piece is only a MacGuffin. Possibly that by no means [happened]. Finally, that by no means made it to trial, however possibly that was simply one thing to distract us [from the real motive].
The concept that one thing as baffling and as complicated as “was Robert sexually assaulted that evening or not,” the viewers will work out. They’ll go on a journey with DNA being discovered and reexamined. There are some surprising discoveries there, however did any of that matter? Is that simply one thing to take our consideration away from one thing else? I don’t know. Possibly [it’s] the thought of we don’t know what issues, we don’t know what’s trivial, and we don’t know what’s essential.
The surprising factor is there was by no means any smoking gun. There’s by no means something we might actually sink our tooth into, so you need to have a look at all these items equally, all these clues. I feel that’s maddening as a result of there are such a lot of of them. Yeah, I don’t know. What if a few of these issues are to distract us? I feel that occurs in storytelling, and possibly one way or the other, that occurred in our story. What if a few of these items that the viewers sees are to divert their consideration from what actually occurred, which we nonetheless don’t know?
Was there anyone you wished to interview for the collection that you just couldn’t? And why?
Positive. We’d have liked to have sat down with Robert’s spouse, but it surely’s been 16 years. She’s moved on. Once more, from all the pieces I’ve heard from the those that know her, from the prosecutor and the investigators, she’s a personal particular person. She doesn’t need to relive this story, and I perceive that. I respect that. After all, we might have liked to have the guts and soul of Kathy Wone, however we additionally should watch out on this style that we don’t revictimize the folks in our tales. That we don’t make everybody shattered by the story retraumatize it.
I hope that’s not the case as a result of, once more, the thought is that this story will get some traction and sufficient folks hear about it and see it, [so] any person comes ahead. You employ this as a instrument for a bigger quest for justice. Spoiler alert, however nobody’s been tried for the homicide of Robert Wone. Costs have been introduced in opposition to folks, and other people have been exonerated of these prices, however nobody has been charged within the homicide of Robert Wone. That is nonetheless an open case.
That’s wonderful to me. I knew nothing about this case. It was a curler coaster experience. I do know that sounds actually trite, but it surely felt like I used to be going up and down, up and down. You suppose you discovered the reply, and it’s like, “Nope, that’s not it.” It’s a must to transfer on as a result of the investigators have to maneuver on. There are such a lot of useless ends. It’s enthralling and irritating on the similar time.
Oh, yeah, completely. It’s irritating to place that collectively, too. To attempt to lead an viewers down a path after which have them hit a useless finish, it’s troublesome. The story may be very round, and I feel we nonetheless needed to inform a narrative with a story arc. A part of the way in which you may converse in regards to the story is sort of totally different than the way you may expertise it within the present. However I recognize that.
It’s not trite. It’s true. There are such a lot of twists and turns. I had the identical feeling, and I feel most individuals will. It’s like, “How did we not know in regards to the story? How was this not a nationwide story?” One of many pundits says within the present that this was a homicide case, but it surely’s not a homicide trial. Possibly that was it. Possibly, if it was a homicide trial, I don’t know. It’s a type of issues the place going again to your first query, how did I by no means hear about this? And after I heard about it, God, everybody ought to learn about this. It’s a type of issues the place as soon as you understand about it, you query why you by no means did. You need to hold speaking about it.
Who Killed Robert Wone? is now streaming on Peacock.
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