Everyone has their own insatiable desire for the disturbing. Whether it’s listening to a murder mystery podcast or ending the day with a glass of wine and a docuseries about an infamous killer, it’s more than normal to find fascination with stories of true evil. But, however thrilling or suspenseful the story may be, it’s easy to get lost in our fascination and catharsis. Even as a devout lover of all things twisted or macabre, I often struggle with the morality of true crime content. While watching Netflix’s new series, Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, I kept asking myself the same question: Is it right for Netflix to release another piece of Dahmer’s legacy to make a profit? There is plenty to discuss regarding the new mini-series and whether it was a good addition to Netflix’s library or a mistake that brings the morality of true crime into question.
Dahmer, released on Sept. 21, 2022, has now hit number one on Netflix’s most-watched list. The starring serial killer is played by none other than Evan Peters, the renowned king of TV horror, who played several gruesome characters in Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story. Many have praised Evan Peters’ performance and dedication to authenticity. What interests me, though, is the choice that directors often make to cast such well-known and loved actors as the starring murderer of their true crime pieces. Not too long ago, we watched Zac Efron play notorious serial killer Ted Bundy in another Netflix series, Extremely Wicked; Shockingly Evil and Vile. I noticed how many people were praising Efron and even sexualizing his portrayal of Ted Bundy, often leading to the glamorization of Bundy himself. Plenty of fan edits and thirst traps would fill my Instagram explore page, each one more unsettling than the next. A similar reaction was seen after the release of a different series about Jeffrey Dahmer, starring Ross Lynch. It made me wonder if directors were casting these stars for their talent, their fanbase, or simply to make their characters easier to sympathize with. The same question applies to Evan Peters’ Dahmer, who once again is quickly attracting fans who enjoy sexualizing the serial killers in these stories.
When debating the morality of casting popular actors as psychotic murderers – another issue comes to mind: whose name do we remember? Dahmer, Bundy, Gacy: The names or nicknames of infamous U.S. killers have been drilled into our minds by the media. If we can remember these names so easily, why do we struggle with remembering the victims? Why don’t we leave a true crime movie with the victim’s names on our lips rather than the killer’s? It seems to me that no matter how good the intentions are of each new blockbuster film or series about a killer, we always leave with the killer’s story, not the victim’s. Because of this, it is easy for a true crime fanatic to forget that each victim was loved by a parent, a partner, or a child. They each had a family whose world was turned upside down by tragedy. Somehow, their story was rewritten to place the killer under the spotlight.
Now that I have watched all of Dahmer, I despise how much I know about Jeffrey Dahmer’s home life and romantic struggles and how little I know about the people whose lives he took. Rita Isbell, the sister of Errol Lindsey, one of Dahmer’s victims, recently spoke out against the Netflix series. She was depicted in the show by an actress in a passionate trial scene, yet she had no idea the series was being made or that she was in it. If the series is truly about shedding light on the victim’s stories, why weren’t their families notified about the creation of the series? Overall, the priorities of the show creators seem twisted and motivated by profit.
Many are arguing that the series is trying to bring topics like racism and homophobia within the police force to light. There are many instances in Monster, where the Milwaukee police’s prejudice and racism prevents Dahmer from being caught. Viewers are also able to recognize the overwhelming demographic of young POC and LGBTQ people that make up Dahmer’s victim profile. These are essential parts of the story and while bringing attention to these realities is arguably a noble cause, must the directors really play the social justice warrior card in a series that focuses more on the killer and the gore rather than the victims? It feels distasteful to dedicate the story of Jeffrey Dahmer to this cause, especially because viewers learn more about his parent’s divorce than the names of the gay or black men he killed. Casting celebrities, dedicating the story to Dahmer’s home life and giving no notice to victims’ families only convince me more that this new series was completely unnecessary and should not have been made. Dahmer was dark, suspenseful, and terrifying, but not respectful to the true victims of the story: the 17 people’s lives that Jeffrey Dahmer took whose names deserve to be remembered more than his.