'Law & Order: True Crime — The Menendez Murders' news: Real-life 1996 double murder at center of new NBC series

NBC has jumped onto the true crime miniseries bandwagon.

The network has just picked up "Law & Order: True Crime — The Menendez Murders," which will be based on the real-life 1996 murders of Jose and Kitty Menendez by their sons Lyle and Erik, for an eight-episode first season, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

The series will be executive produced by Dick Wolf. Former "Law & Order" showrunner and executive producer René Balcer will serve as showrunner and writer for the series.

"René and I have been working together over the past three decades, and he is one of a handful of truly great showrunners with whom I've worked," Wolf said in a statement about the pick-up. "'Law & Order' won the Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series under his watch."

"René is one of the creative foundations of the 'Law & Order' brand and we couldn't be in better hands for 'True Crime' with René and Dick at the helm," NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke added.

NBC's "True Crime' series order is the latest to join in the current true crime TV trend. Earlier this year, FX's "The People v. O.J. Simpson" enjoyed a critically acclaimed run, which earned it 22 Emmy nominations. NBC began developing its upcoming true crime series shortly after "The People v. O.J. Simpson" aired its finale.

Over on CBS, a docuseries about the unsolved case of JonBenet Ramsey is reportedly in development.

"Law & Order: True Crime — The Menendez Murders" will focus on the trial of the Menendez brothers, who were sentenced to life in prison without parole for murdering their parents. Lyle and Erik were only 21 and 18 years old, respectively, at the time of their parents' murders. The siblings were tried separately and were found guilty in a third trial after two hung juries rendered no verdicts in the previous trials.

NBC is yet to announce the official premiere date for "Law & Order: True Crime — The Menendez Murders."