Grant Amato appeared, on the surface, to be living his dream. A 29-year-old college-educated native of Chuluota, Florida, he resided in his beautiful childhood home with his loving parents Chad and Margaret, as well as an older brother, Cody, whom he idolized and who apparently felt likewise about him. Grant and Cody loved guns and were studying to be nurse anesthetists, and they did everything together, including playing Airsoft, a tactical team-based shooting game in which participants pretend to be soldiers. Grant describes his sibling as “my angel on this Earth” and “literally my everything.” In most other respects, he was similarly blessed, and his fortunes seemed destined to keep rising as he made his way through the world.
At least, that is, until his career took a turn for the worse and he discovered a different, more preferable place to spend his every day, night, and dollar: the internet, where cam girls offered him the affection he desperately craved.
Director Colin Archdeacon’s three-part docuseries Ctrl+Alt+Desire (April 16, Paramount+) is, on the one hand, a cautionary tale about the dangers of seeking refuge from problems—especially loneliness—online. Just as chillingly, though, it’s a stark reminder that no matter the environment in which they’re raised, or the number of caring and encouraging figures they have by their side, disturbed (if not outright sociopathic) individuals are always at risk of turning to fraud, crime, and homicidal violence in order to address their particular needs. Grant was one of those people, a solitary and depressed narcissist who coveted attention and resented anyone who tried to thwart his chosen mode of achieving happiness. The results, ultimately, were tragic.
