When True Crime Gets It Right: Patrick McManus & Michael Chernus On Telling The Gacy Story

Imagine being told you resemble one of America’s most infamous
serial killers—and then being asked to play him. That’s the exact
crossroads actor Michael Chernus found himself at when he was
cast in Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy, Peacock’s powerful
reimagining of a case we thought we knew.

In this episode, Chernus opens up about the weight of portraying
Gacy—not the tabloid version, but the eerily “normal” man who
blended into his suburban community while carrying out
unimaginable crimes. He listened to Gacy’s real voice on tapes
passed down from attorney Bob Motta Sr., relayed through Bob
Motta Jr., our guest and legal expert on the case.

We talk about the toll this kind of character work takes, how the
series avoids gratuitous violence, and why refusing to show
murder on screen actually makes the series more disturbing—and
more respectful.

If you think you’ve seen every Gacy documentary, think again.
This is the one that focuses not on the myth, but on the victims,
the failures, and the masks we all miss.
 #MichaelChernus #JohnWayneGacy
#GacyTapes #DevilInDisguise #PeacockSeries #DefenseDiaries
#TrueCrimeActing #PortrayingEvil #VictimFocusedTrueCrime
#HiddenKillersPodcast


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