3 Cognitive Biases in Netflix's "Death Cap: The Mushroom Murders"
Psychology Today | 06.01.2026 02:48
On the 29th of July 2023, five people sat down to a home-cooked meal of Beef Wellington in the small town of Leongatha, Australia. Erin Patterson, the cook, was hosting the dinner party for her former parents-in-law, Don and Gail Patterson, and friends Heather and Ian Wilkinson. Within seven days of the meal, Don, Gail, and Heather were dead, and Ian was critically ill in the hospital. The culprit? Amanita phalloides, more commonly known as death cap mushrooms. In September 2025, Erin Patterson was convicted of three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder for serving her guests Beef Wellington containing these toxic mushrooms.
