Bettmann Archive; Brooke Palmer/PEACOCK John Wayne Gacy circa 1975; Michael Chernus as John Wayne Gacy in 'Devil in Disguise' From self-help guru to serial killer: Severance star Michael Chernus takes center stage as John Wayne Gacy in a first look at Peacock's upcoming true-crime series Devil in Disguise. Chernus, fresh off his turn as self-help author Ricken Hale on Severance, transforms into the notorious criminal, who killed at least 33 young men and boys in Chicago, for the eight-episode series, which debuts Oct. 16. From showrunner, executive producer, and writer Patrick Macmanus (Dr. Death, The Girl From Plainville), the series chronicles the heartbreaking stories of Gacy's victims targeted between 1972 and 1978, when they were kidnapped, tortured, killed, and buried in a crawl space beneath Gacy's home in Norwood Park Township, Ill. Brooke Palmer/PEACOCK Gabriel Luna and James Badge Dale in 'Devil in Disguise' Per a Peacock synopsis, Devil in Disguise "peels back the twisted layers" of Gacy's life as an all-American community leader who even entertained children in a clown costume, earning him the nickname Killer Clown once his atrocities were uncovered — all while weaving in the stories of his victims, "exploring the grief, guilt, and trauma of their families and friends," as well as "exposing the systemic failures, missed opportunities, and societal prejudices that fueled his reign of terror."
Gabriel Luna and James Badge Dale are among the series regulars, playing two cops investigating Gacy's grisly crimes. Marin Ireland portrays a grieving mother demanding answers, while Michael Angarano plays a lawyer. Chris Sullivan is credited as the chief trial prosecutor in Gacy's case.
Speaking to Vanity Fair, Chernus said he initially had no desire to take on the role and declined a meeting with Macmanus. "I didn't want to be involved in something that was gratuitously showing graphic violence or sexual assault," he said, observing that in most true-crime shows, "The victims, if they're named at all, only [appear] in their relation to the person who perpetrated the crimes." But his agent pushed him to reconsider, and a meeting with Macnamus offered mutual understanding.
"He said to me, 'Gacy's not going to be at the center of this, so you won't be in every scene.' And to me that was such a huge relief," Chernus said. "That's where some of my experience as a supporting actor really came into this.
I didn't feel like it had to be all about me or about my character. With this story, I didn't want it to be." Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.
The real Gacy was convicted for his crimes in 1980 and executed by lethal injection in 1994. Watch a teaser trailer for Devil in Disguise above, and see more first-look photos below. Brooke Palmer/PEACOCK Michael Chernus as John Wayne Gacy in 'Devil in Disguise' Pief Weyman/PEACOCK Gabriel Luna in 'Devil in Disguise' Brooke Palmer/PEACOCK Thom Nyhuus, Marin Ireland, Greg Bryk, and Cricket Brown in 'Devil in Disguise' Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly
