The Mortician – Review | HBO

THE MORTICIAN on HBO and Max (soon to be HBO Max, again) is a new docuseries about an infamous true crime case. The HBO Documentary has three hour-long episodes, and it is wild. Read our full The Mortician docuseries review here!

THE MORTICIAN is a new HBO Documentary series in three parts. Each episode is around one hour long, and they will blow your mind. Admittedly, I didn’t know much about this case, but even if I did, the details shocked me.

It’s quite an infamous true crime case about crimes that took place in a crematorium. Well, honestly, other areas related to funeral services were also used for crimes. I don’t know what I expected, but the crimes described in this docuseries went above and way beyond that.

Continue reading our The Mortician docuseries review below. Find episode 1 on HBO and Max from June 1, 2025.

An infamous family-run mortuary

In The Mortician, we get an in-depth look at the crimes that took place in L.A.’s most infamous family-run mortuary. And if you think the crimes that took place at the crematorium were bad (and they are awful and heartbreaking), then just keep watching.

It all begins in the early 1980s, when the next generation takes over the Lamb Funeral Home in Pasadena, California. His name is David Sconce, and he engages in some morally sickening and downright inhumane practices.

All in the name of money, as the goal was to increase his earnings. This was back in the 1980s, which was the age of “Greed is good” (not that much has changed), and David Sconce took that to extremes.

Get ready to hear details about every kind of funeral home crime, from mass cremations to stealing from the dead. And we’re talking “stealing” in all kinds of macabre ways. Needless to say, the scandal shook Southern California, as did the sentences the Lamb Family received.

Featuring an interview with the perpetrator

What makes the HBO Documentary so interesting is not only the true crime covered (though that alone would be enough), but rather who is interviewed to tell us the story. We have decent morticians, relatives of victims, and also an exclusive interview with David Sconce.

He was incarcerated when the documentary began, but as soon as he was released, he was ready to talk. And boy, does he talk. He admits to most things and clearly feels he did nothing wrong.

For someone running a fourth-generation funeral service, David Sconce seems completely oblivious to the sensitivities involved. Especially when it comes to treating the deceased with respect and delivering what the bereaved expect.

Watch The Mortician on HBO and Max

The director of The Mortician documentary series is Joshua Rofé (Out There: Crimes of the Paranormal). He also serves as an executive producer alongside Steven J. Berger, Jonah Hill (yes, the actor), and Matt Dines.

Producers on the docuseries are M. Elizabeth Hughes and Alison Goodwin. For HBO, executive producers are Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, and Tina Nguyen. The series premieres on HBO at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT, and will stream on Max (soon to be HBO Max, again) as well.

New episodes will debut the two following Sundays at the same time.

Watching this true crime documentary, I couldn’t help but think that if this were a horror movie, I’d think it went too far. However, this actually happened. Maybe it still happens in other funeral businesses. I hope not, but who knows?!

The ways this family business exploited the deceased to increase their own profits went above and beyond my wildest and darkest imagination. It just seems so morally wrong and downright sinister. Especially when it comes to their loved ones.

The Mortician premieres on HBO and Max on June 1, 2025.