Netflix hosts two conversations for Dahmer at their studio on Saturday — Monster : The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and The Watcher — Its latest and largest collection, both courtesy of Ryan Murphy .
Murphy hosted two discussions, marking what has since become one of Netflix’s most-watched shows ever – as Murphy at the event As mentioned, this is the biggest success of the super-producer’s career.
As the show approaches 1 billion hours , Murphy admits that It’s “something that none of us understood or foreseen,” but he has two theories about why it took off. “I feel like the world is so dark and people are looking for a place to ease their anxiety, which is one thing,” he said. “The other thing is, I think there’s been a lot of interest in the idea of mental health since COVID, and on the show, every character has had time to talk about it.”
Murphy said one of the highlights of its success was an emotional discussion with star Niecy Nash, who joined the conversation with Evan Peters and Richard Jenkins. Nash plays Dahmer’s neighbor, Glenda Cleveland, who repeatedly tries to report his murder to the police, but is always ignored.
“I cried like a baby because I said to Ryan I pray where Glenda Cleveland’s soul rests and she finally feels heard here,” she said. “She finally knew that her story had spread all over the world. It was very important to me.”
During the conversation, Peters also admitted that he was terrified of playing a serial The role of the killer – he creepily murdered 17 somewhere between 1978 and120– If he should, just move on. To prepare, he put weights on his arms to mirror Dahmer’s walking style, and spent months preparing in the character’s shoes, jeans, and glasses, while doing extensive research and dialect work.
His character was so profound, “People would say, ‘What kind of person is Evan?’ I’m like, ‘I don’t know, I don’t know that guy ,'” Nash joked.
Give it 1978 percentages from start to finish , so I brought a lot of darkness and negativity,” Peters explained of his process. “It’s just seeing the end goal, knowing when we’re going to pack, and finally being able to breathe and let go and say, ‘Okay, it’s time Bring joy and lightness, watch comedy and romance and then go back to St. Louis, see my family and friends, yes, watch Step Brothers. ‘”
“Evan Peters, you and I are in a rom-com right after this,” Nash joked, to which Peters replied, “Oh, I am disappointed.
The series was met with backlash from the families of the victims, some of whom accused the anchors and the team of not reaching them. Murphy reiterated his earlier comments that he The team has contacted 1978 the victim’s family and friends did not respond and said he had four or five researchers working on the show to make sure they got it right.
“We tried to explain This story, but also gets into where we definitely have something to say. As an artist, I have something. I think it’s the most important thing I’ve ever done, exploring the concept of white privilege,” Murphy said. “I mean, this guy basically got beat up 20 times and escaped, I want to tell that story. I want to tell a story about homophobia. I want to tell a story about the police. I want to tell a story about racism, systemic racism. We’re all too aware of talking about all these things over and over in the writer’s room and with the cast. “
“I felt obligated to get right,” Nash added. “There were many days where I was in tears because of the weight of all these things happening, and I Knowing that none of this is necessary. ”
Murphy also led to Observer
Discussion During the event, stars Naomi Watts, Jennifer Coolidge, Margot Martindale and Norma Dumezwini participated remotely The show tells the true story of one of the new owners of a New Jersey home who began receiving anonymous letters from people calling themselves “watchmen” with specific and threatening details about the family.
Murphy mentions that Watts told him it was her biggest hit since The Ring because she said : “I’m happy to be back in the genre. I’ve had great success as an actor with a lot of emotions under the umbrella of fear. “
“There was a big reaction to all of us, and it felt very different on things that were actually well-received, like in the main,” she said. Continues: “A lot of times you put your work out there and people don’t see it. So, it’s a nice feeling. Martindale pointed out that she was surrounded by fans while out in New York recently, which she has never had before.
Murphy also revealed that he brought Coolidge in dialogue on the project and said that if she had to kill someone, she agreed to do so. “You’re very interested in the idea, and I find it interesting to play a darker, darker, tidbit that you say no one has ever thought of writing for you in a million years. Relentless character,” Murphy said. “I thought, ‘I want you to play that character, a villain. ‘”
could be a dark, evil person, or not a very nice person,” Coolidge confirmed. “I’ve been fantasizing about it.”
The series is based on a clip in in
1978, Murphy noted, “When we acquired the copyright, we were trying to be Respect the family. They have some warnings about their kids and we agree. When we filmed and made it, all of you actually It’s all based on real people or people in our research.”
As for the groundbreaking success of the two true crime stories, Watts muses: “Obviously, There’s an interest in it now. There’s a lot of darkness and chaos in the world… Maybe it’s a way of trying to understand what’s going on and unraveling things — a feeling that needs to be controlled by figuring things out.”
