He’s no stranger to seeing the dark side of humanity, but even British documentary-maker Louis Theroux found his latest series, Louis Theroux: Dark States, pretty tough to handle.
“We covered murder, sex and drugs, so it wasn’t really a mild experience,” Louis, 47, tells TV WEEK. The three-part series looks at three American cities grappling with crises: the murder rate in Milwaukee, human trafficking in Houston and the heroin epidemic that’s gripping West Virginia.
This is the latest in a long line of documentary films in which Louis has tackled some of the most confronting subjects on the planet.
The Milwaukee Police allowed Louis to join them on patrol.
“It does become confusing,” he says. “You look at people like the Westboro Baptist Church [a controversial sect known for its hate speech]… they open up to you and invite you in.
“But then, you witness these horrible things humans can say and do.”
He’s spent a career interviewing people at their most vulnerable. But Louis admits that during the filming of the series, he was forced to question his approach to one particular subject.
During production, Louis talked to a prostitute who had lost her previous night’s earnings and was afraid of retribution from her pimp.
“She started having a nervous collapse,” Louis recalls. “I could tell this woman needed help and emotional support. But I also wondered if we should be filming this.”
Ultimately, he decided to push on. But it was a timely reminder that what he’s capturing is real life.
“It felt important to document it, as it was the closest thing to a reflection of how she felt,” Louis admits.
“It’s not easy, but by and large, if you’re working with an adult who is in their right mind, you film. That’s the job.”
