Watch Unabomber - In His Own Words

Unabomber: In His Own Words is a Netflix original limited docuseries that explores the life, motives, and actions of one of the most prolific domestic terrorists in American history: Theodore John Kaczynski, known as the Unabomber. The series features exclusive access to Kaczynski's personal correspondence, interviews with his family members, survivors of his attacks, and experts who studied his case.

The show starts by introducing Kaczynski's early life in Chicago, where he showed exceptional academic abilities since childhood. His IQ was tested at 167, which put him in the genius category. However, as the series reveals, Kaczynski's academic success came with a price. The young Theodore struggled socially, feeling detached from his peers and family members alike. He became obsessed with perfecting his mathematical abilities and later, with environmentalism and anarchism.

Kaczynski's disillusionment with society grew deeper as he progressed through academia, receiving a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and accepting a teaching position at UC Berkeley. He became disgusted with materialism, consumerism, and technology, which he believed were eroding human freedom and dignity. The show portrays how Kaczynski's views became more radical and militant, leading him to start a bombing campaign that spanned over two decades.

The Unabomber's attacks were targeted at individuals and institutions related to technology and modernization. The show details how Kaczynski's bombs killed three people and injured dozens more, including scientists, executives, and innocent bystanders. The FBI dubbed him the Unabomber, assuming that his targets were related to universities (UNA-BOMber).

The docuseries provides an in-depth analysis of Kaczynski's motives and psychological profile, drawing on his personal diaries and letters exchanged with his brother, David Kaczynski, who ultimately turned him in. The show explores how Kaczynski's experiences with conformity, rejection, and trauma shaped his violent ideology and how his anger and frustration manifested in his radical acts.

Besides Kaczynski's story, the series also delves into the investigation and hunt for the Unabomber. The FBI assigned a task force to the case in the late '70s, but despite their extensive efforts, the bomber remained at large for over a decade. The series features interviews with several key figures in the investigation, including Jim Freeman, one of the lead investigators, and James R. Fitzgerald, a profiler who created the Unabomber's psychological profile.

The show also highlights the cultural and political context of Kaczynski's reign of terror, showing how his actions contributed to shaping the national conversation about technology, industrialization, and freedom. The episodes discuss the reactions of the media, the academia, and the public to the Unabomber's manifesto, which he sent to newspapers and magazines, and which ultimately led to his identification and arrest.

Unabomber: In His Own Words is a gripping and insightful docuseries that sheds light not only on the life of the Unabomber but also on the issues that he raised. The show offers a nuanced portrayal of a complex figure, revealing his humanity, his ideals, and his flaws. At the same time, the series provides a cautionary tale about the dangers of extremist ideologies and the power of technology to shape our lives and values.

Unabomber - In His Own Words is a series that ran for 1 seasons (4 episodes) between February 25, 2018 and on Netflix