‘Southern Fried Lies’ Is More Than a True Crime Story, Director Says [Interview] 

Small towns aren’t always safe havens. Just ask the residents of Camden, Arkansas, a bucolic southern community that became the center of a scandal when one of its richest residents died under suspicious circumstances. 

Southern Fried Lies, which airs this Sunday on Oxygen True Crime, digs deep into the 2015 death of Matt Jacobs, a survivor of the Deepwater Horizon disaster who became one of the wealthiest men in town when he received a generous settlement following the explosion. After Matt’s death, local realtor Donna Herring produced his will, which bequeathed most of his fortune to his fiancée, her daughter Alex. Matt’s teenage son, Jordan, was left with almost nothing. But when an estate attorney examined the document, he uncovered a web of lies that shook the town of Camden to its core. 

Director Rachel Reid Holbrook opened up to Showbiz Cheat Sheet about what drew her to this story of betrayal and greed, the unique characters featured in the film, and her hopes for what viewers take away from the story.    

Donna Herring is the ‘charismatic’ and ‘manipulative’ woman at the heart of ‘Southern Fried Lies’

Showbiz Cheat Sheet: Can you talk about the origins of this documentary? What drew you to the case? 

Rachel Reid Holbrook: I learned about the case because I have family in Little Rock. I was fascinated by all of the shocking details that were revealed over the course of the case and then even more shocking details over the course of our filming. From the moment the forgery was discovered, it seemed that the relationships between all parties involved were not what they seemed to be. And in the rarest of rare opportunities, almost everyone was willing to talk on camera, including the accused! She became our main narrator and that makes for a really twisty and compelling narrative because you don’t know who to believe. 

Donna is quite a character. What was your impression of her? Did you feel she was being honest in her interviews, or was she attempting to sell her version of the truth?

I got to know Donna over the course of years and I hope that every dimension of her multifaceted personality comes through in the movie. I got to interview her before prison and after. My impression of her was and is nuanced: She’s a caregiver, she loves to cook for people, she’s charming, charismatic, fun-loving, and hilarious. She’s also a convicted felon. She was deceitful and manipulative; threatening and vengeful. She paid the ultimate price for her lies by pleading guilty in court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and going to prison. She is many things and that is why she is so compelling to watch. 

There are a lot of layers and twists to this story. Was there anything in particular that surprised you as you were working on this project? 

There are so many twists. Every time I thought that the pressure mounting against Donna would cause her to retreat, she would double down. And not just double down on her version of the story, but actually go on the attack. I don’t want to give too much away! But I was constantly surprised, many times, by her boldness.

Rachel Reid Holbrook on walking the true crime ‘tightrope’ 

True crime can be an ethically murky genre. As a director, how did you balance the need to tell a compelling story with also being respectful of Matt and his surviving family?

It’s a tightrope to walk, especially when you are dealing with people‘s most painful moments in their life, such as a death of a family member. It may be hard to believe, but I never saw this as a true crime movie. Yes, there was a crime that kicked it off (the will forgery) and that was bold and compelling, but I was drawn to the motivation behind that crime. Was Donna doing this simply because she was trying to create a better life for her daughter and honor her future son-in-law‘s wishes (as she claims)? Or is she solely self-serving, at the expense of her only daughter? And how could this case bring some peace and closure to Jordan and his father? 

In early development, I sought to examine those parent/child relationships as a universal theme that I believe underpins this crime. Obviously, as the case unfolded and more and more twists and turns were revealed, it turned into a very entertaining story. But my intention and promise to these participants remained the same: Everyone has an opportunity to tell their story without judgment.

What do you hope viewers take away from the documentary?

I hope viewers enjoy the wild ride and all the twists and shocking turns the story takes. I think the documentary does a good job of revealing the many dimensions of Donna. There will be real debate around what may or may not have happened the night Matt died. Because I do believe there is a lot more to know about Matt and the other two deaths, and I hope there is still an opportunity to uncover even more.

Southern Fried Lies airs Sunday, April 27 at 7 p.m. ET on Oxygen True Crime. It will be available to stream on Tuesday, April 29 on Peacock.

For more news and exclusive interviews, follow Showbiz Cheat Sheet’s Instagram.