Boston Strangler: The chilling true story that inspired the Keira Knightley film

In the early 1960s, 13 women were found dead in and around Boston, Massachusetts. Between June 1962 and January 1964, each victim – aged between 19 and 85 – was found strangled, with most having also been sexually assaulted.

With each case there appeared to be no signs of forced entry, leading authorities to believe the killer was known to the victims or had duped them into gaining entry into their homes. The crimes were later attributed to one person, dubbed by the press as the Boston Strangler.

The moniker was first published in the Record-American newspaper by the journalists who broke the story, investigative reporters Loretta McLaughlin and Jean Cole. Now, Disney+ has released a new film that follows the two trailblazing reporters who connected the murders.

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Directed by Matt Ruskin and co-produced by Ridley Scott, the true-crime thriller stars Keira Knightley as McLaughlin and Carrie Coon as her colleague and confidante Cole. The duo finds their investigation stymied by the rampant sexism of the era, but each pursue the story at great personal risk, putting their own lives on the line in their quest to uncover the truth.

The man believed to be the Boston Strangler was Albert DeSalvo, although he was never convicted of any of the 13 murders. In October 1964, DeSalvo was arrested after raping a young woman who’s home he entered by posing as a detective.

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The victim was able to identify her attacker, and after his photograph was published other women came forward and identified DeSalvo. He was initially