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Evan Peters is terrifying as Jeffrey Dahmer in trailer for Netflix's DAHMER

16 September 2022, 15:36

Evan Peters stars as Jeffrey Dahmer in Netflix’s new Monster series

By Katie Louise Smith

DAHMER will be released on Netflix on September 21st.

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Evan Peters has finally returned with a brand new Netflix series where he'll portray the serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. And based on the first trailer, it looks like it's going to be one of Evan's most incredible performances yet.

DAHMER - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, will explore the horrifying case of Jeffrey Dahmer and his victims from previously unseen and unheard angles.

The 10-episode limited series stars Evan as the notorious killer and cannibal, and will follow him from his high school years up to his death in prison at the age of 34. It will also examine Dahmer's murders of 17 men and boys, mostly individuals of colour.

Evan Peters stars as killer Jeffrey Dahmer in Netflix's DAHMER. Picture: Netflix

Speaking about the focus of the series with Netflix Queue, Evan explained that the show is not actually about Dahmer himself, it's about the victims, the mishandling of the case itself, the police failings, and how Dahmer was able to get away with the murders for so long.

"It’s called The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, but it’s not just him and his backstory. It’s the repercussions; it’s how society and our system failed to stop him multiple times because of racism and homophobia," Evan explained. "Everybody gets their side of the story told."

“We had one rule going into this from Ryan [Murphy] that it would never be told from Dahmer’s point of view."

Co-creator Murphy also consulted with Rashad Robinson, the president of civil rights advocacy organization Color of Change, to make sure that the victim’s stories were at the forefront of the show.

Evan Peters says playing Jeffrey Dahmer is one of the hardest things he's had to do. Picture: Netflix

DAHMER will focus on Jeffrey Dahmer's victims and the mishandling of the case by police. Picture: Netflix

Discussing what it was like to portray Dahmer, Evan told Netflix Queue: "I was very scared about all of the things that Dahmer did, and trying to commit to [playing this character] was absolutely going to be one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do in my life."

"It was so jaw-dropping that it all really happened. It felt important to be respectful to the victims and to the victims' families to try to tell the story as authentically as we could."

The DAHMER cast also includes Niecy Nash as Dahmer’s next-door neighbour Glenda Cleveland, Richard Jenkins and Penelope Ann Miller as his parents and Molly Ringwald as his stepmother.

DAHMER drops on Netflix on September 21st.