How weird would it be to grow up unaware you’re Charles Manson’s granddaughter? Filmmaker Sophia Maddox learned the shocking connection to the infamous mass murderer after doing a DNA test and documented her journey to find out more in My Grandfather Charles Manson.
The documentary, co-directed by Maddox and Alexandra Orton, premieres on July 22, 2026 on Hulu. Orton, Matt Renner, and Eric Cook serve as producers, with Maddox, Tim Pastore, Brian Carmody, and Patrick Milling-Smith executive producing.
Hulu offers this synopsis: “Sophia was always the good girl growing up and her father’s rock, but her quest to identify her unknown grandfather results in a shocking discovery: he is Charles Manson, history’s most notorious criminal, and he bears striking physical similarities to her beloved father.
Sophia’s discovery propels her into an underworld of Manson family members and unreliable narrators as she traces her grandfather’s life. Along the way, her genetics unlock never-before-released records and exclusive audio recordings that illuminate Manson’s pathology in startling ways. But the more Sophia uncovers, the more her relationship with her father is strained. For Sophia, there’s no turning back. What has she inherited, and how will she reckon with her family legacy?”
