Lately I’ve been thinking of the strange connection between serial killers and stardom. My roommate and I share a love for true crime; she often recommends books, TV series, movies, and podcasts to me and is always excited to tell the story of an exciting case. As I’ve gone deeper into the world of true crime, I’ve realized there is such a large and strong community of women that share the same interest. I’ve heard various theories as to why true crime is so appealing to women, the dominant one being that knowing these worst case scenarios helps prepare someone for the worst in their own life. But the thing that makes me uncomfortable about my interest in these stories is that they place such a focus on the murderers, especially serial killers. In fact, it’s really the killer that draws the most of my fascination—to know why they did what they did and what made it possible for someone to do something so terrible. Clearly I’m not alone in this, as seen in countless serial killer biopics and documentaries. And interestingly, there is a tendency to cast ex-Disney stars, as Ross Lynch was cast to play Jeffrey Dahmer in My Friend Dahmer, and now Zac Efron will play Ted Bundy in an upcoming biopic. The casting of ex-Disney heartthrobs to play gruesome and prolific serial killers speaks serial killers’ complicated place in society. They are monsters, but they intrigue us. We give them enough attention that they become household names.
I think the biggest risk we run in trying to understand these people is the tendency to bring fame to these names, reducing the victims plot points along the lives of these individuals. It allows unspeakable cruelty to become an avenue for achieving attention and notoriety at the expense of innocent people. It’s natural that we are interested, but I can’t deny that it can become disrespectful to the victims and their grieving families and friends.
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