Key Takeaways:
- Peacock’s new series, Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy, is earning praise for its non-sensationalist, thoughtful approach to the notorious serial killer’s story.
- Michael Chernus delivers an “impressively unsettling” performance as Gacy, with the show focusing on psychological terror over gratuitous violence.
- Unlike many true-crime dramas, the series prioritizes the victims’ stories and the societal failures that enabled Gacy’s killing spree.
- The show deliberately avoids Gacy’s infamous “Pogo the Clown” persona, showing it only once to make a powerful statement about avoiding genre tropes.
In a genre often criticized for glorifying killers, Peacock’s new limited series, Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy, is making waves for what it chooses not to show. The series offers a somber, chilling, and respectful examination of one of America’s most horrific crime sprees, standing as a stark corrective to the sensationalism that has dominated recent true-crime offerings.
A New Kind of True Crime
Creator Patrick Macmanus makes a bold choice from the start. Viewers waiting for the iconic, terrifying clown makeup will have to wait nearly six hours, and when it finally appears, it’s a brief, pointed, and ultimately dismissive moment. There is no clowning mayhem. Instead, the series is an “aesthetically chilly” and methodical procedural that trusts the horrifying facts of the case to build suspense without resorting to exploitative shock.
The narrative is primarily split into three threads: the dogged police investigation led by detectives played by James Badge Dale and Gabriel Luna; the complex legal maneuvering following Gacy’s confession; and, most importantly, flashbacks that illuminate the lives of his victims.
Honoring the Victims
Rather than focusing on how Gacy preyed on his victims, Devil in Disguise explores the circumstances that made these young men vulnerable. The show reframes the narrative away from the killer and onto the social fabric that was failing its youth. Police and media at the time marginalized the victims, but Macmanus gives them back their humanity, introducing us to their hopes, struggles, and the disparate situations that led them into Gacy’s path. As the review notes, the series portrays Gacy not as a monstrous mastermind, but as “a parasite latched onto a failing society.”
Chernus’s Unsettling Portrayal
At the center of the story is a profoundly disturbing performance by Michael Chernus. He portrays Gacy as a complex mix of “hard and soft,” capable of being both “icy and terrifying” while also exuding a squirrelly friendliness that explains how he lured so many to their deaths. Chernus’s performance is a masterclass in psychological dread, anchoring a series that prioritizes quiet, creeping terror over jump scares and gore.
While some may find the eight-hour series a bit long, its deliberate pacing serves a purpose. It forces the audience to confront the weariness, sadness, and systemic failures surrounding the case. By avoiding easy answers and sensationalism, Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy delivers a substantive and powerful drama that may just redefine what a true-crime series can, and should, be.
Image Referance: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-reviews/devil-in-disguise-john-wayne-gacy-review-peacock-1236399507/