Jenn and I have spent the first half of the month tackling all things Ed Gein on the Murder Made Fiction podcast, but we’re also discussing one of the most prolific killers of the 1970s in John Wayne Gacy. In advance of the Michael Chernus-starring Peacock series, Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy, we dug into the queer killer’s backstory.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Gacy embodied several conventional serial killer traits:

• He had a physically and emotionally abusive father
• He may have been sexually molested by a family friend
• He was a smooth-talker with political aspirations (shades of Ted Bundy)
• He was a husband and a father, despite maintaining a double-life

Like many of the cases we’ve covered, there’s also a heart-breaking close call, including a ten year prison sentence in Iowa for underage sodomy charges. That lengthy sentence was ultimately reduced to less than a year because of good behavior and (in classic 1970s fashion) when Gacy moved to another state, his criminal records were sealed and never communicated to the Illinois police.

Alas it was the vulnerable teen boy population of Uptown Chicago who paid the price. 33 young men lost their lives to Gacy, whose penchant for sexually abusing his victims before murdering and hiding their bodies in a crawl space beneath his house is worse than most fictional horror films.

As Jenn and I look ahead to how Peacock’s eight-episode fictional version will play out, listen to our Gacy primer for more details, including the bizarre fact that despite Gacy’s “Killer Clown” nickname (and the evocative imagery that accompanies virtually every media representation), the clown stuff has virtually nothing to do with the murders.

If you want even more Murder Made Fiction, be sure to check out the pod’s Patreon feed, where Jenn and I have 110+ hours of bonus content, including episode by episode coverage of Netflix’s Monster: The Ed Gein Story as well as Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy.

The post Before Dahmer, John Wayne Gacy Was the Most Prolific Queer Serial Killer [Murder Made Fiction Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

From 1972-78, 33 young men were kidnapped, murdered, and buried in a crawl space beneath their killer’s house. And no one was the wiser. Not for all those years. Why? He was charming and funny. Had a good, all-American job. Was a community leader. He even volunteered to entertain sick kids … while dressed as a clown.

“Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy” peels back the twisted layers of Gacy’s life while weaving in heartrending stories of his victims; exploring the grief, guilt, and trauma of their families and friends; and exposing the systemic failures, missed opportunities and societal prejudices that fueled his reign of terror.​

Michael Chernus (“Severance”) stars as the serial killer alongside Gabriel Luna (“The Last of Us”), James Badge Dale (Iron Man 3), Michael Angarano (“The Knick”), Chris Sullivan (“This Is Us”), and Marin Ireland (“The Umbrella Academy”).

The limited series was written by showrunner Patrick Macmanus (“Dr. Death”).

Directors include Larysa Kondracki (101, 106), Ashley Michel Hoban (102), Maggie Kiley (103, 104), Bille Woodruff (105, 107), and Patrick Macmanus (108).

The post ‘Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy’ – Final Trailer Arrives Ahead of Tomorrow’s Peacock Premiere appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Why? He was charming and funny. Had a good, all-American job. Was a community leader. He even volunteered to entertain sick kids… while dressed as a clown.

Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy peels back the twisted layers of Gacy’s life while weaving in heartrending stories of his victims; exploring the grief, guilt, and trauma of their families and friends; and exposing the systemic failures, missed opportunities and societal prejudices that fueled his reign of terror.​

Written by showrunner Patrick Macmanus (“Dr. Death”), the eight-episode limited series streams October 16 on Peacock. Watch the trailer below.

Michael Chernus (“Severance”) stars as the serial killer alongside Gabriel Luna (“The Last of Us”), James Badge Dale (Iron Man 3), Michael Angarano (“The Knick”), Chris Sullivan (“This Is Us”), Marin Ireland (“The Umbrella Academy”).

Directors include Larysa Kondracki (101, 106), Ashley Michel Hoban (102), Maggie Kiley (103, 104), Bille Woodruff (105, 107), and Patrick Macmanus (108).

The post ‘Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy’ Trailer – Michael Chernus Stars in Peacock’s Serial Killer Series appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“Devil in Disguise” premieres on Peacock on October 16, 2025.

The official synopsis: “From 1972-1978, thirty-three young men were kidnapped, murdered, and buried in a crawl space beneath their killer’s house. And no one was the wiser. Not for all those years. Why? He was charming and funny. Had a good, All-American job. Was a community leader. He even volunteered to entertain sick kids… while dressed as a clown. Devil In Disguise: John Wayne Gacy peels back the twisted layers of Gacy’s life while weaving in heartrending stories of his victims; exploring the grief, guilt, and trauma of their families and friends; and exposing the systemic failures, missed opportunities, and societal prejudices that fueled his reign of terror.”

John Wayne Gacy and his ‘Pogo the Clown’ alter ego made America afraid of clowns long before Stephen King introduced us to Pennywise, claiming 33 lives before being arrested in 1978.

As Wikipedia notes, “John Wayne Gacy was sentenced to death on March 13, 1980. He was executed by lethal injection at Stateville Correctional Center on May 10, 1994.”

The series hails from showrunner/executive producer/writer Patrick Macmanus (Dr. Death, The Girl From Plainville) and boasts an impressive cast.

Michael Chernus (Severance, Dead Ringers), Gabriel Luna (The Last of Us, Terminator: Dark Fate), James Badge Dale (The Empty Man), Michael Angarano (Oppenheimer, This Is Us), Chris Sullivan (This Is Us, Mercy), and Marin Ireland (The Dark and the Wicked, The Boogeyman) star.

The new teaser below doesn’t give much away, but it does establish a suitably eerie atmosphere perfect for the Halloween season.

Look for the eight-episode limited series to arrive this October, only on Peacock.

The post Peacock’s ‘Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy’ Gets Creepy Teaser and Images Ahead of October Premiere appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.