Theodore Robert Bundy, otherwise known as Ted Bundy, was born November 24, 1946. He is mainly known as an American serial killer, kidnapper, rapist, burglar, and necrophile who assaulted and murdered numerous young women and girls during the 1970s. After denying these accusations for over a decade, he finally confessed to 30 homicides that he claimed he committed in seven states between the years of 1974 and 1978. Research claims that the true number of victims is still unknown and could possibly be higher.
With a new series called Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes released by Netflix and a new movie called Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019), where Bundy is played by heartthrob Zac Efron, Ted Bundy is again, once in the spotlight. What more people are concerned about though, is how Bundy is being portrayed. The trailer for Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile has aired and Bundy is shown in a romantic light. Fun, bumping music is played in the background and Zac Efron is seen falling in love, winking during Bundy’s courtroom scenes, and taking pictures with admirers. Many online users are accusing the movie of romanticizing a horrible serial killer and, maybe, even mocking those who were affected by them. The problem stems from America’s sense of romanticizing and “falling in love” with serial killers, obsessive relationships, and seemingly broken but lovable characters.
In the case of Ted Bundy, as you watch the Netflix series Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tape, many police officers, prison wardens, attorneys etc. describe Bundy as a charismatics, attractive, narcissist who really thought he could get himself out of all the trouble he was in. His actions were those of a cocky Hollywood actor even speaking the famous quote “I’m bigger than Disney World” (Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile). The fame he gained due to the events he was suspected of committing only fueled his erratic behavior. His ‘good looks’ and haughty actions gave him a fan club with many adoring woman following him, coming to all his hearings, and truly believing because of his good looks and nice actions that there was no way he committed the horrible actions he was accused of.
The new trailer for Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile shows Bundy in this light and shows how much of America, and even those close to him, truly believes there was no way he had a part in these evil actions. I believe as human beings we want to see the best in people, especially people around us. Even if our relationship with them isn’t completely right, we would not necessarily believe that they can commit murder, or simply intentionally hurt other people. We especially have this view of what people who do commit these evil and vile things look like. On the news and in the media, we often do not see pictures of serial killers being happy with their family, but we see their mug shots, hearing pictures when they are in handcuffs, or look messy and not put together. This causes us to only see people who do wrong as a certain way, not looking good. When we see someone smiling, with nice hair and good eyes, we often do not place them as a killer. Simply, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile brings our biases on this topic to light and we relive the terrifying ordeals of Ted Bundy’s actions.