A new Netflix documentary that premiered last week has sparked intense reactions online. The 90-minute film tells a harrowing and tragic story that has left many viewers deeply disturbed. Warning: this article contains difficult and distressing content.
Viewers Left Shaken
One Reddit user, Calvinbuddy1972, confessed they 'wished they hadn't watched it,' adding, 'That was my first thought when it ended.' The documentary in question is Maternal Instinct, which recounts the unbelievable case of a woman named Taylor Parker.
The trailer opens with bodycam footage of a Texas police officer pulling over Parker, who claims to have given birth in her car. The scene is accompanied by her frantic call to emergency services: 'I need an ambulance 'cause I started having my baby.' What follows is unsettling hospital footage where a medical professional remarks, 'She doesn't look like she had a baby.'
Netflix's Description
Netflix describes the film as 'gut-wrenching,' stating: 'Maternal Instinct unravels a woman's years-long web of deception and the grisly murder it led to, told through the voices of those who lived through it in a small Texas town.' The platform warns of 'sensitive topics including violence, graphic crime-scene imagery, and distressing details surrounding the murder of a pregnant woman and her unborn child.'
Interviews and Reactions
The documentary features interviews with people who knew Taylor, including Wade Griffin, a local hog trapper who had a relationship with her. He recalls that Taylor claimed to be pregnant after a couple of months, but inconsistencies soon emerged. On social media, viewers expressed their horror. One user wrote, 'I watched this last night: terrifying, demonic.' Another commented, 'I've watched over 50 documentaries, but this blew my mind. Taylor Parker was a next-level delusional psychopath.'
The Crime
Parker was convicted of murdering her pregnant friend Reagan Simmons-Hancock and cutting her unborn daughter, Braxlynn, from her womb. Bodycam footage captured the perpetrator performing CPR on the stolen baby. Parker is currently one of seven women on death row in Texas, according to the state's department of criminal justice.
Maternal Instinct is now streaming on Netflix.
