Louis Theroux has a real knack for strolling into some of the weirdest, wildest niche subcultures on the planet and, with a uniquely charming brand of conviviality, getting them to open up in ways they never have before. It’s a knack that makes him an endlessly watchable documentarian — so, it’s no great wonder that, over the past 30 years, he’s racked up an impressive catalogue of almost 100 BBC documentary titles to his name, from his early Weird Weekend days to his more recent in-depth celebrity interviews.
His latest doc, now on Netflix, seems to be one of his buzziest releases yet. Inside the Manosphere offers a glimpse into the rise of misogyny-fuelled male influencers. “What they believe is that society hates men,” Theroux told us. “Or that society has no time for weak men, and that men are going to be crushed unless they make themselves uncrushable and create an armour.”
In many ways, tackling this subculture feels like a natural move for Theroux. “Whether it’s wrestling or gangster rap or the porn industry, these are worlds in which people perform versions of themselves. And often, they’ll take a new name. With these men, it’s a similar thing,” he said, describing the “manosphere” as his “final boss”.
But before tackling his final boss, what other subcultures and groups did Theroux delve into? Here are our favourite Louis Theroux documentaries to date.
Louis and the Nazis (2003)
One of Theroux’s earlier documentaries, Louis and the Nazis, remains an unsettling watch. In the TV special, Theroux heads to California and spends time with Tom Metzger, an American neo-Nazi known for his racist views. A famously disturbing moment sees Theroux refusing to reveal whether or not he is Jewish. He also meets with Lynx and Lamb, 11-year-old twins who sing Nazi folk music.
Watch on the BBC.