We all have our dating app horror stories, but the Tinder Swindler, an original Netflix documentary series that debuted on the streaming service on February 1 takes the cake. After proving to be a hit on the platform, Variety reported that Netflix were in talks with producers to make a drama movie based on the Tinder Swindler.
The documentary tells the story of several Scandinavian women who were defrauded on dating app Tinder by a man named Shimon Hayu. A notorious con man, Hayu posed as Simon Leviev, the son of Israeli diamond tycoon Lev Leviev. He would woo the women through expensive dates and develop long-distance relationships with them before making financial requests.
Due to his supposed family connections, Hayu claimed that he had extensive security needs. He encouraged various women to take out lines of credit for him under their names, defrauding them out of thousands of dollars. He was eventually sentenced to 15 months in prison for the crime, but was freed after serving five months. According to Variety, he has an active Instagram, and allegedly claimed in an Instagram story on February 4 that he was prepared to go public with his side of the story.
This isn’t the first time a hit Netflix documentary has been dramatised. After Tiger King — which tells the eccentric story of warring big cat enthusiasts Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin — became a lockdown sensation, several dramatised retellings of the deadly, real-life rivalry were announced.
While Amazon Prime Video’s original series starring Nicholas Cage as Joe Exotic fell through, another dramatised TV series, entitled Joe vs Carole, is coming to streaming service Peacock on March 4. John Michael Cameron and Kate McKinnon are set to play Exotic and Baskin respectively.
Tiger King: Murder Mayhem and Madness and the Tinder Swindler are both available to stream now on Netflix.