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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Taken: Natalee Holloway’ On Netflix, A Docuseries Where The Famous Case Is Explored By The Victim’s Mother And Friends
Netflix’s three-part docuseries *Taken: Natalee Holloway* revisits the teenager’s 2005 disappearance in Aruba through the accounts of her mother, Beth Holloway, her friends and people who helped pursue the case. The review recommends watching it, saying the series conveys the long emotional toll on those close to Natalee, even if it offers little new information.
Natalee disappeared on 30 May 2005 during a post-graduation trip, after being seen with Joran van der Sloot, who became a person of interest early in the investigation. He admitted killing her in 2023, after denying involvement for 18 years. The series also examines criticism of the Aruban police investigation, including a former deputy police chief’s defence of its handling of the case.
In short
- Netflix revisits Natalee Holloway’s disappearance in a three-part series.
- Her mother and friends describe the case’s lasting emotional toll.
- The review recommends watching, despite little new information.
Explained simply
Natalee Holloway was an 18-year-old from Alabama who disappeared in Aruba on 30 May 2005, during a trip with classmates after finishing school. She was last seen with Joran van der Sloot, a Dutch man who became a focus of the investigation.
Van der Sloot denied involvement for 18 years before admitting in 2023 that he had killed her. The case also drew scrutiny over how Aruban police handled the investigation, a subject on which a former deputy police chief has defended the force’s actions.
Natalee’s mother, Beth Holloway, and her friends have remained closely associated with efforts to find out what happened. Their accounts help show why the case has continued to affect those close to her years after her disappearance.