Outcry is a 2020 documentary television miniseries written and directed by Pat Kondelis, about the real-life story of high school football star Greg Kelley, who was arrested, wrongfully convicted and jailed for sexual assault of a 4-year-old boy, as well as his support system that pushed back in their quest for truth and justice. The Showtime mini-series premiered on July 5, 2020.
Into Greg Kelley's senior year in Leander, Texas, he was arrested, convicted, and jailed for sexual assault of a four-year-old boy, and later for a second child, who both attended day care in the home where Kelley was living.[1] Kelley was sentenced to 25 years in prison with no possibility for parole. In support of Kelley, a supporting groundswell emerged that called into question the small-town police force, their investigation, the prosecution's tactics, and ultimately the validity of the conviction[2] in one of the most controversial cases the county had ever seen.[3] Kelley was completely exonerated in November 2019.
"This does not feel like freedom at all," said Kelley who was convicted of child sexual assault in 2014 to be exonerated in 2019 although it is exceedingly rare for the state's highest criminal court to overturn a conviction.[4]
Reception
Rotten Tomatoes favorably rates Outcry 89% from 9 critics and 93% from 15 users,[5] while the Internet Movie Database rates it 8.4/10 from 690 users.[6]Metacritic rates Outcry 78% from 5 critics.[7]
The Guardian said, "It was a rollercoaster" and the most surprising docuseries of the summer.[8]
Michael Morton, who was mentioned in Outcry as also having been wrongfully convicted, expressed that the way the prosecutors are being presented in Outcry is problematic.[10]
Decider considered whether to "Stream It Or Skip It" and called to "Stream It" as did 73.5% on their Twitter poll.[11]
Lawyer Robert Barnes highly recommends Outcry, stating, "What's also still unsettling is that even Texas Rangers and high-ranking law enforcement officers still don't know how to prosecute a child abuse case."[12]
Disgraced (2017 film), also written/directed/produced by Pat Kondelis, is an Emmy Award winning Showtime documentary on the 2003 murder of Baylor University basketball player Patrick Dennehy, the NCAA, and its scandal with Dave Bliss.
The Scheme (2020 film), also directed by Pat Kondelis, is a documentary on basketball insider Christian Dawkins, who hustled the FBI in a scandal that threatened to take down the NCAA.
The Radical Story of Patty Hearst, another 2018 documentary mini-series directed Pat Kondelis, is about the transformation of Patty Hearst from kidnapped heiress to well-known terrorist is a saga of privilege, celebrity and violence, from firsthand accounts over forty years later.