Michael Chernus plays serial killer John Wayne Gacy in new Peacock series Devil in Disguise, and the actor has revealed that he performed a daily ritual to pay tribute to the victims.
John Wayne Gacy was arrested in 1987, sentenced to death in 1980, and executed via lethal injection in 1994 for the murder of at least 33 young men and boys.
His story is told in Peacock’s new eight-part true crime drama Devil in Disguise, though writer/producer Patrick Macmanus’s take on events focuses more on the victims than the murderer, who became known as the ‘Killer Clown’ due to his involvement with a local ‘Jolly Joker’ club.
Severance star Michael Chernus – who plays the title character – has also revealed that his mind was on those victims while playing the role.
John Wayne Gacy actor wrote down names of victims throughout shoot
While appearing on The Today Show, Michael Chernus revealed, “I had kind of a ritual every day in my trailer. I had this poster board from, like, the science fair, like those three-fold [boards] – and I wrote down all the names of Gacy’s victims and their age when they were killed.
“I would just kinda open that up every day in my trailer at the beginning of my day to remind myself why I was doing this. And then close it up at the end of the day.”
Chernus also explained that it was the show’s fresh approach to the material that initially attracted him, adding: “It’s a story that’s been covered almost ad nauseum since he was arrested in 1978, and I felt like, ‘What new do I have to add to this story?’
“And then when I found out they were doing this sort of different thing where we’re focusing more on the victims, that really drew me in.”
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