# Horror at the Cecil Hotel (2017)

> A three-part true crime docuseries that traces the decades of deaths and disappearances tied to the Cecil Hotel in Los Angeles.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/70950

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 3
- Episode runtime: 43 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: documentary, crime
- Created by: Leland Krane
- Network: Investigation Discovery
- Cast: William V. Ryder, William Jousset, Josh Dean, Hadley Meares, Joan Renner, Frank C. Girardot, Gregg McCrary, Gil Carrillo
- TMDB rating: 6.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7529610/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: grim, unsettling, eerie, somber, methodical

## What critics say

Audiences find the true crime documentary series compelling but mixed, with its sensational framing drawing divided reactions.

## Synopsis

Horror at the Cecil Hotel (2017) is a three-episode American true crime docuseries created by Leland Krane for Investigation Discovery. It follows the long chain of deaths, suicides and disappearances associated with a Los Angeles hotel that opened in 1924, when a guest took his own life in one of its rooms. Rather than dramatizing events, the series builds its case through interviews with people who know the building's history best, including detectives, an FBI profiler, a Los Angeles historian and true crime writers. Each episode moves between archival records, police accounts and the lore that has grown around the building, so viewers slowly see how a single tragedy became a legend. The mood is grim and unsettling, with a steady undercurrent of unease and a sense that some deaths will never be explained. Its tone stays somber and methodical, favoring quiet testimony over shock, so the accumulated weight of loss lingers long after each episode ends. Fans of The Staircase, Making a Murderer and Wild Wild Country will find the same mix of documentary patience and dark local history, though the sensational framing will divide some viewers.

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