Plot Synopsis

Directed by Tiller Russell, WACO: AMERICAN APOCALYPSE is a three-part documentary that explores what happened in Waco, Texas in 1993 when cult leader David Koresh faced off against the federal government in a bloody 51-day siege. The conflict began with the biggest gunfight on American soil since the Civil War and ended with a fiery inferno captured live on national television. In between, it riveted TV viewers across the globe, becoming the biggest news story in the world.

Released to coincide with the 30th anniversary of this national tragedy, the series features exclusive access to recently unearthed videotapes filmed inside the FBI Crisis Negotiation Unit, as well as raw news footage never released to the American public, and FBI recordings. It is driven by intimate and revealing interviews with people from all sides of the conflict, including one of David Koresh's spiritual wives, the last child released from the compound alive, a sniper from the FBI Hostage Rescue Team, the FBI Crisis Negotiation Unit Chief, the key journalists covering the story, as well as members of the ATF tactical team who watched their colleagues die in the shootout against members of the religious sect.

All three episodes of WACO: AMERICAN APOCALYPSE dropped on Wednesday, March 22, 2023 on Netflix:

"In the Beginning...": Gunfire erupts when federal agents arrive at the Branch Davidian compound with a search warrant and hostage negotiators attempt to free the children.

"Children of God": Curiosity over the man calling himself a messiah makes Waco the center of a media circus. FBI negotiation and rescue teams clash over the use of force.

"Fire": The world waits as Koresh makes new promises of surrender. But the FBI's controversial tactics turn the compound into an apocalyptic scene.