Painkiller is an American drama television miniseries created by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster.

[4] Based on Patrick Radden Keefe's New Yorker article "The Family That Built an Empire of Pain" and Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic by Barry Meier,[5] the series focuses on the birth of the opioid crisis, with an emphasis on Purdue Pharma, the company owned by Richard Sackler and his family that was the manufacturer of OxyContin.

[13] Production began in Toronto in April 2021 and wrapped in November 2021.

The website's critics consensus reads, "Painkiller honors the victims of the opioid crisis with effective dramatic beats but is undermined by its stale satirical flourishes, resulting in a tonally confused bit of muckraking.

[18] Writing for American Council on Science and Health, a pro-industry group, Cameron English criticized the series, alleging that it unfairly pins the blame for the opioid crisis on Purdue and the Sackler family.