'Ignoring Victims' Wounds' Serial Killer Drama Sparks Emmy Nomination Controversy

Netflix's 'Dahmer' on Bizarre Serial Killer
Nominated for 13 Emmy Awards... Bereaved Family Says "A Deeper Wound"

The notorious American serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer’s crimes are depicted in the Netflix drama Dahmer ? Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (hereafter, Dahmer), which has been nominated for an Emmy Award. This has sparked criticism that it could cause greater pain to the victims’ families.

Dahmer, born in 1960, murdered 17 people in the Milwaukee area of Wisconsin from 1978 to 1991. The victims were primarily young Black and people of color.

Moreover, Dahmer shocked American society by mutilating the victims’ bodies in grotesque ways and committing acts such as cannibalism and necrophilia. One wealthy individual even purchased the entire apartment where the crimes took place and demolished it. Dahmer was sentenced to life imprisonment after his arrest and died in 1994 after being beaten by another inmate while incarcerated.

Dahmer is a 10-episode drama portraying Dahmer’s life over intervals of ten years. The series maintains a consistently gloomy and lethargic atmosphere, realistically depicting the killer’s abnormal psychology and criminal acts without filtering, which has drawn both praise and controversy.

Netflix drama 'Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story'
[Image source: Provided by Netflix]

As a result, the drama was a major hit, and this year at the Emmy Awards, Evan Peters, who portrayed Dahmer, was nominated for Best Actor, with the show receiving 13 nominations in total. The Emmy Awards are considered one of the most prestigious honors in the American entertainment industry, alongside the Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards, collectively known as the “Grand Slam” of American entertainment.

On the 15th (local time), Thomas Jacobson, a lawyer who represented the victims of Dahmer, issued a statement to the media condemning the Netflix drama Dahmer for receiving 13 Emmy nominations, saying it “glorifies a murderer and can cause trauma to the victims’ families,” according to the American entertainment outlet People. Jacobson, now retired, represented the families of eight victims in related lawsuits at the time.

Jacobson stated, “Awarding an Emmy to a program like Dahmer glamorizes societal violence and crime and desensitizes people to it.”

He added, “The continued attention surrounding the case, including 13 Emmy nominations, glorifies this monster’s actions and motives and inflicts greater trauma on the victims’ families.”

Netflix drama 'Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story'
[Image source: Provided by Netflix]

This is not the first time the victims’ families have raised concerns about Dahmer. Shirley Hughes, mother of victim Tony Hughes, expressed to the British daily The Guardian last year, “I don’t understand how they can use our names to broadcast such content.”

Rita Isabel, sister of victim Errol Lindsey, said about her portrayal in the drama, “All the emotions I experienced when I was tormented came flooding back.” In fact, the drama reenacts Isabel’s courtroom outburst where she angrily lunges at Dahmer while speaking.

Jacobson pointed out, “The entire focus of the drama is on the murderer, and no one cares about the victims. This program did not obtain prior participation or consent from the families, which made the already wounded families even more distressed.” Errol Lindsey’s cousin Eric Perry also stated that they were not notified in advance about the production of the drama.

However, Dahmer producer Ryan Murphy countered by claiming, “We contacted 20 family members and friends of the victims, but no one responded.”

Meanwhile, People reported that “Netflix has yet to issue an official response regarding this matter.”