BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — Thursday marks the 31st anniversary of the biggest art heist of all time -- a story which you’ll soon be able to binge on Netflix.
The four-part docuseries, titled This Is A Robbery, was directed and made by brothers Colin and Nick Barnicle -- who first heard news of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum heist while growing up in Lincoln, Massachusetts.
"Although we thought it was kind of [like the movie] Thomas Crown Affair, not smash-and-grab like it was," Director Colin Barnicle said.
Thirteen works of art were stolen from the museum in the 1990 heist. The federal government has valued the works at $500 million, and no arrests have been made -- nor have any pieces been recovered.
Barnicle said that outside local Massachusetts communities, there seemed to be "very little sensibility" and familiarity with the case. He and his brother are looking to change that by preparing their audience to be "detectives" for the mystery -- hoping the right person will watch and be able to solve it.
"You hope that it's on somebody's wall -- you know, they bought it at a garage sale thinking it was a second hand reproduction when it's actually the real thing," Barnicle said.
The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is currently offering a $10 million reward for information that leads to the recovery of the stolen art.
Despite being situated in the "true crime" genre, Barnicle said This Is A Robbery differs from similar projects on Netflix because it is not centered on a murder case or another instance of violent crime.
"[With a lot of these projects] there's always a dead body up at the beginning of it in scene one, and it's hard to watch with your kids," he said. "So I feel like this project sort of lends itself to the family atmosphere."
The series is set to premiere on the streaming service on April 7, 2021.
WBZ’s Matt Shearer (@MattWBZ) reports.
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Written by Rachel Armany
(Photo: Getty Images)