Real-Life 'Gone Girl' Cases Explored in Netflix's 'American Nightmare'

The documentary delves into the 2015 kidnapping of Denise Huskins, drawing parallels to the plot of the popular thriller, Gone Girl.

Gone Girl, the popular psychological thriller, was not based on any particular true crime event but was inspired by the 2002 Scott and Laci Peterson case and other cases Gillian Flynn encountered during her career as a journalist.
The 2015 real kidnapping of Denise Huskins from her home in California and her mysterious return two days later was quoted as being very similar to the Gone Girl-like story.
Netflix’s latest documentary, titled American Nightmare, exposes a similar case as that of Amy Dunne’s disappearance in Gone Girl.
In the real-life case of Denise Huskins, the local Vallejo police initially refused to believe the incredible story given by Denise and her boyfriend Aaron.
Months later, a similar attempt and a phone left behind by the culprit took the police to former Marine and disbarred lawyer Matthew Muller who pleaded guilty to his crime against Denise, leading to his sentence of 40 years in prison.