Captive Audience: A Real American Horror Story — Season 1
When Steven Stayner returned home, the real story began.
About this season
1972: 7-year-old Steven Stayner vanishes from Merced, California. For years, his family searches for him, only to find they’ve been looking for the wrong boy. 50 years on, Steven’s children unearth clues to their father’s mysterious past.
Episodes (3)
1. Chapter 1: Steven’s Story Part 1
7.0Aired 21 April 2022 • 49 min
1972: 7-year-old Steven Stayner vanishes from Merced, California. His family struggles to keep his case in the public eye - until his heroic return seven years later sparks a media sensation.
2. Chapter 2: Steven’s Story Part 2
8.0Aired 21 April 2022 • 44 min
A heroic escape. A televised family reunion. But the Stayner ordeal is far from over as painful secrets surface. When a hit TV movie rewrites the Stayner story, reality gets stranger than fiction.
3. Chapter 3: Cary’s Story
7.3Aired 21 April 2022 • 48 min
Two decades after Steven went missing near Yosemite, three tourists vanish from the same area. When the FBI finds the killer, the Stayner family is linked to the new, horrifying crimes and the family is thrust back into the headlines.