David Tennant’s Chilling 3-Part Crime Thriller Is Officially Leaving Netflix

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David Tennant stares down the camera for DES, a British crime thriller about serial killer Dennis Nilsen

Published Oct 25, 2026, 2:30 PM EDT

Rohan Naahar is a News Writer for Collider. From Francois Ozon to David Fincher, he'll watch anything once.

He has covered everything from Marvel to the Oscars, and Marvel at the Oscars. He also writes obsessively about the box office, charting the many hits and misses that are released weekly, and how their commercial performance shapes public perception. In his time at Collider, he has also helped drive diversity by writing stories about the multiple Indian film industries, with a goal of introducing audiences to a whole new world of cinema.

A few weeks ago, Netflix released the psychological drama film Unabomber, starring Russell Crowe and Jacob Tremblay. The movie received poor reviews, but emerged as a solid hit for the streamer and offered an alternative to fans of David Fincher’s Mindhunter. Like that cult classic series, Unabomber examined the psychology of a mass murderer and relied heavily on dialogue scenes over moments of mayhem and violence. Fans looking for something with a similar vibe are in luck, as a critically acclaimed limited series is currently streaming on Netflix in the United Kingdom, but only for a little while longer.

The three-part series was released in 2020, as part of ITV’s long-running string of shows based on infamous crimes and criminals in the UK. The 2020 series revolves around the crimes of Dennis Nilsen, who was arrested in 1983 and subsequently convicted of multiple counts of murder. The show follows the police’s investigation of the case, their interrogation of Nilsen, and his eventual trial. It featured David Tennant as the titular serial killer, in a widely acclaimed performance that earned Tennant an International Emmy Award.

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We’re talking about Des, created by Lewis Arnold and Luke Neal. Des was the 11th in ITV’s series of shows based on infamous British murder cases, following Appropriate Adult and Little Boy Blue. In many ways, this is the United Kingdom’s answer to Ryan Murphy’s Monster anthology series on Netflix. Des received excellent reviews and is now sitting at a “Certified Fresh” 90% score on Rotten Tomatoes. The aggregator website’s consensus reads, “Des is a smartly scripted, sufficiently eerie true crime drama anchored by a chilling performance from David Tennant.” The series will be removed from Netflix in the UK on November 8. Tennant’s beloved murder-mystery show Broadchurch, on the other hand, will be removed from Netflix in the United States on November 1. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.