‘Weird, wild and whacked-out’: Netflix viewers react to shocking new John McAfee documentary

Netflix viewers are currently being stunned by the life events of antivirus technology mogul John McAfee.

Running With the Devil: The Wild World of John McAfee, released on the streaming platform this week, follows the controversial businessman as he flees Belize after being named a person of interest in the death of his neighbour Gregory Faull.

It then follows him on the run again in 2019 from US authorities, crossing the Caribbean and eventually to Europe where he was arrested at a Spanish airport. He died less than eight months later after allegedly killing himself in his cell.

Following its release on Wednesday 24 August, viewers took to social media to share their thoughts on the “wild” story of McAfee’s downfall.

“John McAfee is possibly the most interesting person to have ever lived,” one wrote on Twitter.

“I’ve seen 3 or 4 documentaries/documentary series about him and each time is from a different perspective and I learn something new. It’s a weird, wild and mostly wacked-out story. I love that s***.”

Another wrote: “So I’m watching the John McAfee movie and it’s good. He’s a hot damn mess so it’s wild as usual.”

Many viewers pointed to perhaps the documentary’s most shocking claim, which came from McAfee’s ex-girlfriend.

Samantha Herrera, who was McAfee’s partner while living in Belize in 2012, claims that the cyber security pioneer faked his own death and is secretly living in Texas.

“John McAfee faking his own death - Believable John McAfee just hunkering down and not doing something insane to blow his cover afterwards - impossible,” wrote a viewer on Twitter.

Similarly, another wrote: “John McAfee faking his own death seems like a very John McAfee thing to do.”

In the final interview before his death, McAfee told The Independent that he never wanted to return to the US and believed there was “zero chance” that Spain would extradite him.

McAfee’s widow Janice McAfee has launched an online petition calling for the release of his body, which remains in a Spanish morgue.

Running With the Devil: The Wild World of John McAfee is out now on Netflix.