More than a decade after David Fincher's last theatrical release, Gone Girl in 2014, the director has worked exclusively with Netflix on projects including Mank, The Killer and the upcoming The Adventures of Cliff Booth, a sequel to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood due in IMAX later this year before streaming on Netflix. Among his Netflix-era work, the crime drama Mindhunter, on which he served as executive producer, is widely regarded as his standout achievement, even though it was cancelled after two seasons in 2019 due to high production costs.

Mindhunter, which explores Fincher's long-standing fascination with serial killers, holds a 97% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics praising its second season for deepening its storytelling without losing the detail that made the first season compelling. The article frames the show's acclaim as a reason to revisit Fincher's earlier true-crime thriller Zodiac, which is currently available to stream for free, as suitable viewing before or after a Mindhunter rewatch.