Here at Watch With Us, we love true crime as much as the next person — but sometimes it can be hard to watch.
If you’re feeling a little weighed down by the darkness of the true crime world, we have a Netflix recommendation for you.
American Vandal, a 2017 series that parodies true crime docs, is hilarious, but it still creates an engrossing mystery that will leave you dying to watch the next episode.
And luckily, you can. There are two excellent seasons of American Vandal on Netflix — here’s why you should watch them in July 2025.
‘American Vandal’ Season 1 Is Iconic
In American Vandal, the crime at the center of season 1 is a graffiti incident of epic proportions — someone vandalized 30 faculty cars with crude drawings. A student, Dylan Maxwell (Jimmy Tatro), was blamed, but amateur documentarians Peter Maldonado (Tyler Alvarez) and Sam Ecklund (Cruel Summer’s Griffin Gluck) suspect there may be more to the story. Thus, the guiding question of the season becomes a constant refrain: “Who drew the d***s?”
It sounds crass (and it is), but as Peter and Sam attempt to uncover the truth, deeper problems within the hierarchy of Hanover High are revealed.
The second season of American Vandal covers a new mystery about “The Turd Burglar,” and it’s a solid outing, but season 1’s mystery is particularly thrilling.
The Netflix Show Features a Who’s Who of Future Stars
The young cast of American Vandal features some stellar actors who are quickly rising through the ranks of Hollywood. Tatro, who was already a YouTube celebrity before being cast in the show, has gone on to star in the sitcom Home Economics and the hilarious indie film Theatre Camp, while Gluck was a main cast member in Freeform’s Cruel Summer. Alvarez, too, has worked steadily since Vandal, appearing in shows like Ghosts and What We Do in the Shadows.
Many of the supporting cast members have also gone on to success. Eduardo Franco, who plays Dylan’s friend Spencer Diaz, has appeared in hits like Stranger Things and Booksmart, while Lukas Gage has appeared in You and Companion. We recommend keeping an eye on the cast of American Vandal — there’s clearly a lot of star power among these young performers, many of whom are now in their 20s or 30s and gaining mainstream success.
‘American Vandal’ Critiques High School Social Structures
While American Vandal is unquestionably funny and even silly, it’s not afraid to take itself seriously in the way it approaches its subject matter. As Peter and Sam investigate the smear campaign against Dylan Maxwell, who one student calls “a known d*** draw-er,” it becomes obvious how predisposed the school community was to believe the worst of a kid who has a reputation as a troublemaker, even when the evidence wasn’t all there.
The storytelling goes even further with this theme, meditating on how our reputations can trap us — sometimes causing people to fulfill others’ low expectations.
You’ll recognize a lot of high school archetypes in American Vandal, but the series does an excellent job deconstructing them, reminding us all to take a second look at our first impressions.
American Vandal combines hilarious deadpan performances with a genuine mystery and a poignant message to form one of Netflix’s all-time best series.
Watch American Vandal on Netflix now.
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