Show: Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks

A Cold Case Files spinoff focusing on DNA

About Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks

Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks is a Cold Case Files spinoff that focuses solely on the role of DNA testing in solving murder cases that have gone cold after several years, sometimes decades.

Narrated by Cold Case Files and American Justice host Bill Kurtis, this true crime show has a similar feel to the original: victims’ loved ones join detectives in telling their stories about the homicides and their investigations, and police interviews fill in the details. But instead of detailing cold cases involving all types of forensics, this show focuses on DNA testing. Many of the cases include the use of genetic genealogy to solve the crimes, a fascinating new field of forensics.

True crime shows

The Show Elements

Seasons: 1 (2023-)

Where to stream: Hulu

More shows like Cold Case Files: DNA Speaks: Cold Case Files, Forensic Files, The New Detectives, Unsolved Mysteries, Cold Justice, American Justice

See also this list of true crime shows

✓ Police interviews
✘ Trial clips
✓ Narration
✓ Re-creations
✘ Experts
✓ Victims’ families and friends


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Show: Cold Case Files

Detectives solve cold cases through forensics and other techniques

Cold Case Files

About Cold Case Files

Cold Case Files comes in two flavors: the classic series narrated by Bill Kurtis (sometimes called Cold Case Files Classic) and the re-boot narrated by Danny Glover and later Kurtis. Kurtis’ mellifluous voice will make you sleepy, but the cases are too absorbing and the writing too deftly crafted to nap through.

From serial killers to serial rapists, episodes feature one to two stories each and focus on investigative techniques used to crack cold cases, particularly DNA and other forensics, including forensic anthropology, entomology, and even botany. Forensic specialists appear on the show and sometimes demonstrate the steps of the methods they used to help unravel a cold case, such as DNA testing, fingerprint identification, or sculptural reconstruction of the face, providing a fascinating look inside the field.

This true crime show doesn’t dwell on the victim’s background or suspect’s trial and instead leads viewers through the strategies used to solve long-unsolved cases. The newer version of Cold Case Files has more re-creations and less narration, allowing those involved to tell their stories in their own words. Convicted offenders sometimes offer their accounts of the crimes, and sometimes even fess up to them.

True crime shows

The Show Elements

Seasons: 9 (1999-2012, 2017-)

Where to stream: Amazon Prime Video, The Roku Channel, Hulu, Netflix, Peacock, and Discovery+

More shows like Cold Case Files: Forensic Files, The New Detectives, Unsolved Mysteries, Cold Justice, American Justice

See also this list of true crime shows

✓ Police interviews
✓ Trial clips
✓ Narration
✓ Re-creations
✘ Experts
✓ Victims’ families and friends


Latest Posts