"My Brother's Killer" makes Wisconsin debut April 18

On October 29, 1990, the remains of 25-year-old William Arnold Newton (aka Billy London) were discovered in a Los Angeles dumpster south of Santa Monica Boulevard. The crime was shockingly sinister: Newton had been decapitated and dismembered.  Only his head and feet were ever found.  

Despite the best efforts of family members, private investigators, and a devoted police detective working against time and across decades to crack the case, Billy’s murder was still unsolved 30 years after his death. By 2020, very few people even remembered the crime, much less the name Billy Newton.

Thanks to the remarkable efforts of filmmakers Rachel Mason and Dion Labriola, researcher Clark Williams, and Los Angeles Police detective John Lamberti, the case was finally solved in February 2023 after a five-year investigation. Their journey spanned from California to Wisconsin to Oklahoma, as the team explored the sordid sides of the adult film industry, the white supremacist movement, and even the Jeffrey Dahmer murders.

On April 18, the Milwaukee Film Festival will proudly present My Brother's Killer, a feature-length documentary about this cold case that haunted West Hollywood for over three decades.  This first-in-Wisconsin screening follows the film's sensational debut at SXSW on March 13.

As a long-time community partner, we are proud to support this film, as well as the Milwaukee Film Festival's mission of creating world-class cinematic experiences that convene diverse audiences and catalyze positive change. 

This year, we are sponsoring not only My Brother's Killer, but the GenreQueer Shorts program, which features eight short films celebrating a spectrum of LGBTQ experiences as vast and diverse as our Wisconsin communities. 

There's truly something for everyone at the Milwaukee Film Festival!

Tickets, packages, and all-access passes are now on sale for the Wisconsin Film Festival, running from April 16-30 in Milwaukee.

Learn more about Billy Newton's story at Our Lives Magazine.

About the Films

MY BROTHER’S KILLER, DIR Rachel Mason
UNITED STATES / 2026 / 95 MIN / ENGLISH

The unsolved WeHo murder of Billy London, a gay adult film
performer who grew up in rural Wisconsin, lingered as an
urban legend for 33 years. What begins as a documentary
tribute to Billy’s life evolves into a gripping investigation as
community members uncover overlooked clues and pursue
long-delayed justice. Drawing from a trove of personal footage,
MY BROTHER’S KILLER exposes eerie connections between Billy
and several suspects filmed in the narrow window surrounding
his death.

• Saturday, Apr 18 | 4:15 PM | Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema)
• Wednesday, Apr 22 | 3:30 PM | Oriental Theatre (Herzfeld Cinema)

https://mkefilm.org/films/69b8...

From tender (BAFTA Award-winning!) animation to laugh out
loud comedies, GENREQUEER SHORTS continues Milwaukee
Film’s year-round celebration of queer cinema. Join us for an
evening that showcases the unique histories, complexities, and
joys of the LGBTQ+ experience.

• AutoErotica: We Buy Gay Stuff | Jeremy von Stilb
• Betty St. Clair | Kyle Casey Chu, Syra McCarthy
• Butt/Stuff | Ricki Romano
• In the Flesh | Emily Frances Kaplan
• Poreless Harris Doran
• Rainbow Girls | Nana Duffuor
• The Motive | Jorge Molina
• Two Black Boys in Paradise | Baz Sells

• Monday, Apr 20 | 4:45 PM | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)
• Thursday, Apr 23 | 7:00 PM | Downer Theatre (North Cinema)