Inside The Manson Cult: The Lost Tapes TV Special To Shed New Light On Charles Manson And Followers

charles manson 1987 interview

One of the most notorious and infamous criminals in American history, Charles Manson also remains a major source of pop culture exploration, and his influence is as strong as ever. On the fictional side, Manson will be a major focus of Quentin Tarantino's Leonardo DiCaprio-starring Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, but Fox is more interested in digging up some lost history for the upcoming TV special Inside the Manson Cult: The Lost Tapes, which will give viewers a few new looks at the deadly former inhabitants of Spahn's Ranch.

Inside the Manson Cult is set to debut on Monday, September 17, at 8:00 p.m. ET, on Fox. And on top of all the new and old footage and interviews shown therein, the special will be feature voiceover narration from Ray Donovan star Liev Schreiber. Perhaps interestingly, it's set to air ten months after Charles Manson's death by cardiac arrest, as opposed to airing closer to the one-year anniversary.

The two-hour Fox special was edited together after over 100 hours of video and audio footage were reviewed, and Inside the Manson Cult: The Lost Tapes aims to present a fully rounded look inside the Family's Spahn's Ranch. It'll feature new and archival interviews with former Manson followers such as Diane "Snake" Lake and Catherine "Gypsy" Share, and it'll also boast an exclusive new interview with the currently imprisoned Bobby Beausoleil, who was responsible for the first of the Manson-inspired murders, with friend Gary Hinman as the victim.

As well, Inside the Manson Cult will feature interviews with some folks outside Charles Manson's influence. One of those will be Stephen Kay, a prosecutor who spent years making efforts to oppose anyone within the Manson Family being awarded parole. As well, the special will spent time with renowned criminal profiler John E. Douglas, who served as the inspiration for Hannibal's Will Graham and for Mindhunter's Holden Ford, with Manson's reign of terror getting explored in the latter series.

Beyond the Quentin Tarantino flick, which has already caused some controversy, Charles Manson is also set to be the subject of The Family, potentially featuring Matt Smith as the cult leader. David Duchovny's ratings-challenged NBC miniseries Aquarius featured moments and events that Manson was involved with, and on the comedic side, 2015 gave us J. Davis' Manson Family Vacation. But the upcoming Fox special sounds like it'll be far more into mirroring reality than those projects were. You can watch the first look preview below.

So don't forget to tune into Fox on Monday, September 17, at 8:00 p.m. ET, to catch the world premiere of Inside the Manson Cult: The Lost Tapes. And to see what new and returning shows will be around in the meantime, head to our fall premiere schedule.

Nick Venable
Assistant Managing Editor

Nick is a Cajun Country native and an Assistant Managing Editor with a focus on TV and features. His humble origin story with CinemaBlend began all the way back in the pre-streaming era, circa 2009, as a freelancing DVD reviewer and TV recapper.  Nick leapfrogged over to the small screen to cover more and more television news and interviews, eventually taking over the section for the current era and covering topics like Yellowstone, The Walking Dead and horror. Born in Louisiana and currently living in Texas — Who Dat Nation over America’s Team all day, all night — Nick spent several years in the hospitality industry, and also worked as a 911 operator. If you ever happened to hear his music or read his comics/short stories, you have his sympathy.