‘Three Identical Strangers’ on Hulu Is One of the Most Disturbing Documentaries Ever

You wanna see some crazy shit? Hulu has you covered. One of the most shocking documentaries of the past few years, Three Identical Strangers, has just landed on the streaming service. If you haven’t seen this true-life story about identical triplets who were separated from birth as part of a government-sanctioned experiment, I promise you’re not going to see anything more jaw-dropping all day.

In 1961, three six-month-old infants were adopted out to three different families, none of which were told that these children had brothers. Edward Galland, David Kellman, and Robert Shafran were split into three income brackets: one blue-collar; one middle-class; and one affluent. Thus began a previously undisclosed and supremely unethical nature vs. nurture experiment that would forever haunt these three men and their families.

Directed by Tim Wardle, Three Identical Strangers resides in the realm of documentaries that are almost too insane to be believed. Much like the deep dive into the eccentric mother and daughter pair that is Grey Gardens or Gypsy Rose’s shocking true crime case in Mommy Dead and Dearest, just the idea of these separated triplets randomly finding each other in adulthood is a premise that almost feels too convenient for a documentary. It only gets more shocking from there, as the film outlines in excruciating detail how the scientists behind this study and employees at Louise Wise adoption agency manipulated three innocent lives without telling a soul.

Without giving too much away, what makes Three Identical Strangers such a compelling film is how it deals with its central theme of conspiracy. On paper, absolutely every conspiracy theory sounds insane, but seeing the film unravel and later confirm these families’ darkest theories is horrifying to behold. Hundreds of people panic about possibly being part of a governmental cover-up, but these three men who were the victims of a scientific study partially funded by the government are the real thing. In many ways, they had no clue until it was too late.

When Galland, Kellman, and Shafran’s tale of reuniting first starting gaining national attention, it was sold as a triumphant reunion. But Wardle’s award-winning film flips that narrative on its back to expose the wounds underneath. Ultimately, this miraculous story of brotherly reunion isn’t merely one of joy. It’s one of grisly deception and regret over what could have been, all at the hands of a corrupt experiment. This is what a real conspiracy looks like, and it’s a far cry from the happy news story everyone wanted.

Watch Three Identical Strangers on Hulu