TV
Michael Chernus Playing John Wayne Gacy in Peacock’s ‘Devil in Disguise’
Peacock has ordered up their own limited scripted series based on the John Wayne Gacy murders, and Deadline reports today that Michael Chernus (“Severance”) will star.
Titled John Wayne Gacy: Devil in Disguise, and starring Chernus as John Wayne Gacy, the upcoming Peacock series comes from “Dr. Death” creator Patrick Macmanus.
Chernus said in a statement, “The direction that the writers are taking with this project is important, focusing on the victims and their families as well as those who finally brought John Wayne Gacy to justice. While Gacy was the perpetrator of these horrific crimes, I’m relieved that he won’t be the main focus of the series.”
“It’s heartbreaking for me to think of what his victims (all young men and boys) could have done with their lives had the system not failed them so tragically,” Chernus continues. “I believe in the power of storytelling and hope that by telling this story, in a thoughtful way, we can play some part in preventing this from ever happening again.”
Here’s the official synopsis from Peacock: “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 John Wayne Gacy’s life while weaving in the heartrending stories of his mostly gay 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.”
You can learn more about Gacy’s horrific murders by watching Netflix’s docu-series Conversations with a Killer: The John Wayne Gacy Tapes, which debuted back in 2022.
Himesh Patel (Tenet, Don’t Look Up) will star opposite Danielle Deadwyler (The Woman in the Yard) in Ryan Coogler’s reboot of “The X-Files“, which has wrapped filming on the pilot.
Patel confirmed the news in a chat with The Direct, while reiterating that he and Deadwyler play new characters.
“I don’t want to say anything that’s going to get me disappeared. Needless to say, myself and Danielle Deadwyler are playing completely new characters, and we just wrapped on the pilot. If we get to do more… we’ll see where we go from there,” Patel said.
That last sentence is noteworthy, as Patel is reminding that Hulu has only ordered the pilot so far. A full series order has yet to be greenlit.
It’s a good reminder, considering that Hulu also ordered a pilot for the “Buffy: New Sunnydale” reboot that was filmed and delivered earlier this year, only for the streamer to send shockwaves when it opted not to move forward with the series.
As for “The X-Files” pilot, Sinners filmmaker Ryan Coogler writes and directs the pilot. Jennifer Yale (“The Copenhagen Test”) serves as showrunner.
Himesh Patel and Danielle Deadwyler play two highly decorated but vastly different FBI agents who form an unlikely bond when they are assigned to a long-shuttered division devoted to cases involving unexplained phenomena.
Patel and Deadwyler previously co-starred together on “Station Eleven.”
Other actors who have signed on for guest roles include Amy Madigan, Steve Buscemi, Ben Foster, Devery Jacobs, Lochlyn Munro, Tantoo Cardinal, Joel D. Montgrand, and Sofia Grace Clifton.
“The X-Files” originally ran for nine seasons between 1993 and 2002, with two additional seasons arriving in 2016 and 2018. 218 episodes were produced in total, along with two feature films: 1998’s The X-Files: Fight the Future and 2008’s The X-Files: I Want to Believe.
Himesh Patel in “Station Eleven”
You must be logged in to post a comment.