2024·Documentary·3 episodes
7.8
★
Backstreet Boys. NSYNC. Lou Pearlman created the biggest boy bands of the '90s — and one of the largest Ponzi schemes in history.
Created by David Terry Fine
miniseries
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Cast
Lou Pearlman
Self (archive footage)
Crew
Ian Orefice
Executive Producer
Monika Mikkelsen
Casting
Popular Reviews
12 reviews
mikaela
5.0★ · 01/27/25
as bad as he was (and he was truly bad), I am glad to not hear about any (of yet confirmed) child sexual abuse but that is how we know that the bar is in hell
as bad as he was (and he was truly bad), I am glad to not hear about any (of yet confirmed) child sexual abuse but that is how we know that the bar is in hell
Lexi Longanecker
6.0★ · 07/24/24
Too much Lou Pearlman not enough *NSYNC
Too much Lou Pearlman not enough *NSYNC
Matt LunePRO
6.0★ · 07/24/24
My wife is a huge Backstreet Boys fan, going all the way back to the start, so she was more aware of the ins and outs of this case than me. Even she was shocked at some of the revelations, though, so there's plenty of fascinating aspects of this case still being uncovered it seems.
As wild as this story actually is, the wildest thing about this documentary is the extremely weird choice to use AI to animate old interview footage of Lou Perlman. They've taken archival footage, and used AI to animate the mouth and voice of Lou Perlman to make it appear as though he's reading passages from his own autobiography. It's so strange, and also confuses the focal point of the documentary, are we meant to sympathise more with Perlman?
If you're interested in late 90s/early 00s pop music then this is a really interesting watch. Just be warned about the creepy AI.
As wild as this story actually is, the wildest thing about this documentary is the extremely weird choice to use AI to animate old interview footage of Lou Perlman. They've taken archival footage, and used AI to animate the mouth and voice of Lou Perlman to make it appear as though he's reading passages from his own autobiography. It's so strange, and also confuses the focal point of the documentary, are we meant to sympathise more with Perlman?
If you're interested in late 90s/early 00s pop music then this is a really interesting watch. Just be warned about the creepy AI.
My wife is a huge Backstreet Boys fan, going all the way back to the start, so she was more aware of the ins and outs of this case than me. Even she was shocked at some of the revelations, though, so there's plenty of fascinating aspects of this case still being uncovered it seems.
As wild as this story actually is, the wildest thing about this documentary is the extremely weird choice to use AI to animate old interview footage of Lou Perlman. They've taken archival footage, and used AI to animate the mouth and voice of Lou Perlman to make it appear as though he's reading passages from his own autobiography. It's so strange, and also confuses the focal point of the documentary, are we meant to sympathise more with Perlman?
If you're interested in late 90s/early 00s pop music then this is a really interesting watch. Just be warned about the creepy AI.
As wild as this story actually is, the wildest thing about this documentary is the extremely weird choice to use AI to animate old interview footage of Lou Perlman. They've taken archival footage, and used AI to animate the mouth and voice of Lou Perlman to make it appear as though he's reading passages from his own autobiography. It's so strange, and also confuses the focal point of the documentary, are we meant to sympathise more with Perlman?
If you're interested in late 90s/early 00s pop music then this is a really interesting watch. Just be warned about the creepy AI.
Lexi Longanecker
6.0★ · 07/24/24
Too much Lou Pearlman not enough *NSYNC
Too much Lou Pearlman not enough *NSYNC
Amber
4.0★ · 10/26/25