zodiac killer movie review ted bundy

Are These Rumors True About Zodiac Killer?

Allegedly, he was a fan of lady gaga, trolled ted bundy online, and had a friend who wanted the world to know about his murderous past., jessica lee, published oct. 9, 2021.

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A team of private investigators, called the "Case Breakers," claimed to have uncovered evidence to pin the prolific series of unsolved murders that terrorized Northern California in the late 1960s on a man who died in 2018. As a result, Internet sleuths circulated numerous posts supposedly showing traces of the man's internet persona. However, it was erroneous to claim those posts showed genuine photographs of, or comments written by, the Zodiac killer because federal and local investigators tasked with solving the cold case have not identified a suspect, as of this writing.

In early October 2021, a group of private investigators announced it had evidence that a California man who died several years prior was the Zodiac Killer. Despite the lack of confirmation from law enforcement authorities on the veracity of that belief, the revelation sparked news stories , as well as makeshift investigations by social media users into the man's life before his death.

In short, popular tweets and Reddit threads made numerous allegations, such as the Zodiac killer was a Lady Gaga fan; trolled serial killer Ted Bundy online; supported the Minnesota Vikings' NFL team; and had a friend who wanted the world to know about his murderous past.

Numerous Snopes readers sent us requests, or searched our site, for truth behind those rumors — as well as reliable information on whether the 52-year-old mystery was indeed solved.

The rumors were fueled by the work of the " Case Breakers " — a group of roughly 40 former law enforcement officers, prosecutors, journalists, and intelligence officials who aim to solve murder cases.

After supposedly comparing photographs to a police sketch, analyzing anagrams, and interviewing witnesses, the Case Breakers in early October released the name of the man who they believed terrorized northern California in the late 1960s as the Zodiac. Some media outlets, such as Fox News and Deadline , published stories identifying the man.

“I absolutely feel we solved this case,” Tom Colbert, a member of the group, told the San Francisco Chronicle .

“There’s no ego here,” he continued. “We do this to solve cases.”

FBI, Police Push Back on Cold Case Team's Findings

The Chronicle's newsroom, as well as police, get hundreds of tips every year on potential Zodiac suspects and solutions to the case, according to the newspaper.

For instance, a team led by a former California Highway Patrol Officer announced in 2011 that it believed a 91-year-old former real estate agent was responsible for the slayings; however, investigators said there wasn't enough evidence to substantiate the theory.

Cue the Case Breakers' October 2021 announcement. In addition to five killings in 1968 and 1969 in the Bay Area (murders that the FBI has conclusively linked to the Zodiac), the Case Breakers believe the serial killer also murdered Cheri Jo Bates , an 18-year-old woman slain hours away in Southern California's Riverside in 1966.

However, Riverside Police Officer Ryan Railsback debunked that theory in an interview with the Chronicle. "If you read what they (the Case Breakers) put out, it’s all circumstantial evidence. It’s not a whole lot," Railsback told that newspaper.

In fact, federal and local investigators tasked with solving the Zodiac case aren't sold on any of the private team's findings; they say the search to find the Zodiac remains ongoing.

"Sources at both agencies [the FBI and San Francisco Police Department] told The Chronicle the evidence presented by the Case Breakers does not appear to be conclusive," the newspaper reported .

Furthermore, San Francisco's FBI bureau tweeted on Oct. 7:

When we reached out to the FBI ourselves, its communications team referred us to the above-displayed tweet.

Snopes also contacted the San Francisco Police Department, and a spokesperson responded via email: "The SFPD's investigation into the Zodiac case is open and ongoing. As a consequence we cannot comment further on the investigation."

Because the agencies consider the case ongoing, Snopes is not naming the man who the Case Breakers believes was the Zodiac — apparently an Air Force veteran who died in 2018. For the purpose of this report, we will call him "the Case Breakers' man." He lived in the Sierra foothills and died at the age of 80, according to the Chronicle , which cited court records.

Journalists with that newspaper reportedly spoke with a relative of the man six years before the Case Breakers' October 2021 announcement. Also, they talked to the man's daughter-in-law on Oct. 6, and she said that she believes the Case Breakers "nailed the killer." The Chronicle published:

The Chronicle was called six years ago by a relative of the Case Breakers suspect, who said the man lived in Groveland (Tuolumne County) and had tried to kill him with a hammer. He contacted investigators, but when The Chronicle followed up with law enforcement, they said the Zodiac connection did not appear to be there. The Groveland man’s former daughter-in-law told The Chronicle on Wednesday that she was intimately familiar with the other relative’s fears, and she believes the Case Breakers have nailed the killer. She lives out of state and said she moved to get away from threats from the man and his supporters. The Case Breakers suspect died in 2018 of natural causes, she said. County records show he was 80. “It’s my birthday today, and this all coming out is a great birthday present for me,” said Michelle Wynn, 52. The Case Breakers suspect “is the Zodiac, without a doubt. Being around him, knowing his demeanor and his shadiness and twistedness — I have an intuition, I can read people.” Wynn said the 1969 police sketch “was like a bell-ringer for me. ... I saw that and thought, ‘That’s him.’ Totally,” she said.

In short, while a team of private investigators claimed to have identified the Zodiac and a relative of that man reportedly told journalists that she believed he was "the Zodiac without a doubt," federal and local law enforcement agencies including the FBI have not confirmed — nor given any indication — that that was indeed true.

Additionally, critics of the Case Breakers' findings include Michael Hobbes , of the Huffington Post and the podcast, “ You’re Wrong About ," and Jay Barmann , a writer for SF News.

Was The Zodiac a Lady Gaga, Minnesota Vikings Fan?

After some news reports published the full name of the Case Breakers' man, Twitter did what Twitter does best — ragtag sleuthing and meme-ing.

On Oct. 8, Barstool Sports compiled a sample of theories circulating widely about the man under the headline, " Alleged Zodiac Killer Had Ironic Internet Presence. "

That piece cited viral tweets claiming the following: that the Zodiac had supposedly left a glowing review of Lady Gaga's 2016 "Joanne" album on metacritic.com ; trolled Ted Bundy in a review on an IMDb page; and had a friend who repeatedly outed him as the person behind the brutal slayings on social media.

Let us start with the assertion that the serial killer was among Gaga's Little Monsters . The Barstool Sports' piece included a tweet supposedly showing screenshots of the Case Breakers' man leaving a comment on the metacritic.com profile of "Joanne," on Oct. 24, 2016, reading: "A national treasure, like myself."

However, we analyzed thousands of reviews on the album's profile, including those published on Oct. 24, 2016, and found no such remark.

The screenshot appeared to be a digital creation. Over the course of hours, other Twitter users meme-afied the concept with similarly edited images, supposedly showing the man's affinity for various video games , bands , and musical artists .

The claim about the 2015 documentary titled "The Hunt for Ted Bundy" seemed to be the same thing: An unknown digital artist apparently replicated the look and design of an IDMb review to make it seem like the Case Breaker man left the review, "Awful. Would give less than 1 star if I could. Ted Bundy is wildly overrated."

We came to that conclusion by studying the documentary's actual IMDb page , which only had one review and was not the phrases pictured above.

Next, we addressed the rumor about a friend to the Case Breakers' man "trying to tell everyone" about his murderous past.

There was no verified evidence to prove the friend was a real person who knew the Case Breakers' man, and/or that he had authored the alleged posts about the Zodiac. If there was any reason to consider their authenticity, journalists with reputable news outlets, such as the Chronicle, would attempt to interview the purported friend. That had not happened, as of this writing, however.

We reached out the viral tweet's author to learn how, or with what evidence, they obtained photographs supposedly showing the Case Breakers' man and the friend, as well as screenshots of the friend supposedly calling the former man the Zodiac. We haven't heard back, but we will update this report if that changes.

Additionally, tweets and Reddit threads circulated photos of someone who they believed was the Case Breakers' man wearing a hat representing the Minnesota Vikings NFL team . Several sports blogs recirculated that allegation, too.

"The man allegedly outed as the Zodiac Killer was a Vikings fan," a Reddit post read.

However, no evidence proved that the man pictured above in a Vikings hat was the same person as the Case Breakers' man. The picture matched the profile photograph for a Facebook account with the same name, however — an account that had little activity viewable to the public aside from a July 2011 post sharing a Washington Post article about Casey Anthony .

All of this said, it was impossible for social media users' investigations into the Case Breakers' man to prove anything about the Zodiac killer — that he was a Lady Gaga fan, Viking's supporter, Bundy troll, etc. — because federal and local investigators tasked with solving the case refuted the private team's work, and considered the person behind the prolific slayings unknown. For that reason, we rate this claim "False."

Casiano, Louis. “Cold Case Team Says Zodiac Killer ID’d, Linking Him to Another Murder.” Fox News , 4 Oct. 2021, https://www.foxnews.com/us/cold-case-zodiac-killer-identified-murder.

Fagan, Kevin. “Zodiac Killer Case Solved? Case Breakers Group Makes an ID, but Police Say It Doesn’t Hold Up.” San Francisco Chronicle , 6 Oct. 2021, https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Zodiac-Killer-case-solved-Case-Breakers-16514228.php.

HarinFootball, Billy. Alleged Zodiac Killer Had Ironic Internet Presence. https://www.barstoolsports.com/blog/3387802/alleged-zodiac-killer-had-ironic-internet-presence. Accessed 8 Oct. 2021.g, Bruce, and Bruce Haring. “Zodiac Killer, Long-Sought Bay Area Serial Murderer, Identified By Cold-Case Task Force.” Deadline, 7 Oct. 2021, https://deadline.com/2021/10/zodiac-killer-bay-area-criminal-case-breakers-1234851218/.

“Case of the Zodiac Killer Takes Another Twist – but Police Say It Isn’t Solved.” The Guardian , 8 Oct. 2021, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/oct/08/zodiac-killer-investigation.

CNN, Sarah Moon and Cheri Mossburg. “Group Claims It Has Solved the Identity of the Zodiac Killer as Law Enforcement Investigates.” CNN , https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/06/us/zodiac-killer-identity-law-enforcement-investigation/index.html. Accessed 8 Oct. 2021.

“Zodiac Killer: Authorities Rebuff Cold Case Team’s New Lead.” BBC News , 7 Oct. 2021. www.bbc.com , https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-58837900.

“‘The Case Remains Open’: FBI Rebuts Claim Zodiac Killer Case Is Solved.” NBC News , https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/case-remains-open-fbi-refutes-claim-zodiac-killer-case-solved-n1281002. Accessed 8 Oct. 2021.

dc. “The Last Zodiac Victim.” The Case Breakers , 29 Sept. 2021, https://thecasebreakers.org/2021/09/the-last-zodiac-victim/.

The Hunt for Ted Bundy (2015) - IMDb . www.imdb.com ,https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4774372/reviews. Accessed 8 Oct. 2021.

Cold Case Unit | Riverside Police Department . https://riversideca.gov/rpd/about-contact/operations/investigations-division/cold-case-unit. Accessed 8 Oct. 2021.

“The Zodiac Killer.” FBI , https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2007/march/zodiac_030207. Accessed 8 Oct. 2021.

This report was updated to note the FBI's response to Snopes' inquiry about its investigation into the Zodiac case.

This report was updated to include the San Francisco Police Department's response to Snopes' inquiry about its investigation.

By Jessica Lee

Jessica Lee is Snopes' Senior Assignments Editor with expertise in investigative storytelling, media literacy advocacy and digital audience engagement.

The Truth About Jim: Was the Zodiac case solved?

The Zodiac Killer remains the most famous unsolved crime case in US history, but does HBO’s new true crime documentary, The Truth About Jim, crack the code?

Referred to as the “golden age of serial murder,” the 1970s to the 1990s marked a chilling epoch of notorious serial killers lurking in the shadows of American society. During this time, individuals such as Ted Bundy , Jeffrey Dahmer , and John Wayne Gacy left a trail of terror and tragedy in their wake, each with their own gruesome modus operandi.

Though we can’t be certain, the prevalence of serial killers during this era has, over the years, been attributed to a series of socio-cultural and psychological factors: the upheaval of traditional societal norms and values, coupled with the advent of mass media and widespread urbanization. Additionally, advancements in forensic technology and law enforcement techniques allowed authorities to better identify and track serial offenders, leading to a heightened awareness of their existence within society.

However, one individual they couldn’t and still can’t track down is the Zodiac Killer. As well as being responsible for at least five murders in the 1960s, he would taunt authorities with a series of cryptic ciphers and letters sent to local newspapers, in which he claimed responsibility for his crimes and mocked law enforcement for not being able to catch him. The Zodiac Killer’s identity is explored in The Truth About Jim , but has the case been solved? Warning: Spoilers ahead and some may find this content distressing.

The Truth About Jim: Was the Zodiac case solved? 

No, the Zodiac Killer case has not been solved. In The Truth About Jim, Sierra Barter questions whether her late step-grandfather, Jim Mordecai, could be the elusive murderer – but while anything is possible, Zodiac expert Mike Butterfield explains why it’s unlikely, saying that he doesn’t “see much that would indicate” Mordecai’s the culprit. 

It’s worth noting that for the most part, the docu-series sees Barter speaking with various family members – including her mom Shannon and grandmother Judy, as well another of Mordecai’s wives, his daughters, and his stepchildren – about her step-grandfather. As well as violent outbursts and delusions of grandeur, Mordecai is accused of the sexual assault and attempted rape of numerous teenage girls, including his step-daughter Christi Probst.

As she digs further, sinister details about Mordecai’s past are uncovered, leading Sierra and her relatives to believe he could be the Santa Rosa hitchhiker killer. The unsolved case occurred between 1972 and 1973 when authorities found the remains of seven young female hitchhikers in Sonoma County and Santa Rosa of California’s North Bay area.

Midway through the series, Sierra discusses the case of Kathleen Johns. In 1970, Kathleen was abducted by a male driver on Highway 132. She managed to escape and flag down another driver, who took her to the police station. When she got to the station, she pointed to a sketch of a man on the wall and said, “That’s the guy.” The image she identified was the police sketch of the Zodiac killer. 

Sierra begins comparing the case with that of her step-grandfather. Physically, Mordecai fit the bill – he was the same height, the same stocky, athletic build, he had the same shoe size, and he looked like the police sketch. He also had delusional fantasies and was highly familiar with the areas the Zodiac stalked. Sierra shows an image of Mordecai at Lake Berryessa, seemingly not far from where the Zodiac attacked a young couple in 1969. 

But while it’s an interesting theory, there are a number of discrepancies between the two – the main theory is that Mordecai could have been the Santa Rosa killer, whose target was teenage girls. However, the Zodiac targeted men and women. Additionally, Mordecai’s and the Zodiac’s appearance – slicked-back hair and thick-rimmed glasses – was very common at that time. 

When Sierra presents the evidence to Butterfield, he says: “I can understand why you would have some base suspicions about it to begin with, but having looked at what you have, and having talked to you about it, and then thinking about your attitude about all this, which is – nobody wants anybody in their family to turn out to be one of the worst serial killers in history. There’s a saying that I’ve heard before, which is, ‘A cold case is no substitute for a warm life.’” Prior to this, Butterfield explains, “I don’t see much that would indicate he’s the Zodiac.”

This meeting allows Sierra to put the theory to bed and focus on the question at hand: was Mordecai responsible for the Santa Rosa Hitchhiker Murders? In addition to his knowledge of the area, and even owning a nearby secluded ranch, Jim would often reference hog-tying – the method used by the Santa Rosa serial killer to discard the bodies. 

Additionally, when he died, Judy and Shannon discovered a box among his belongings – and inside of it were random pieces of mismatched jewelry, the type that would typically belong to teenage girls in the ‘70s. Unfortunately, they discarded the box, not knowing it could have been a key piece of evidence in the case. 

In The Truth About Jim, FBI profiler Raymond Carr puts together a profile of the killer based on the evidence surrounding the Santa Rosa murders. As he’s reading out the characteristics, it becomes clear that Mordecai fits the bill. Carr then shares a crucial piece of information – authorities obtained a semen sample from the remains, meaning somewhere, the killer’s DNA is on file. 

But while Sierra is able to retrieve a sample of Mordecai’s DNA to compare, alongside a compelling case of evidence, the ending of the true crime series reveals that authorities are still looking into the information. What she is able to do, however, is bring closure to her family. They all reunite in the final episode, where Christi tells her: “You coming forward and doing this has allowed all of us to heal.”

Zodiac Review

18 May 2007

158 minutes

Jack The Ripper is remembered 120 years after he put down the knife for two reasons: a) someone (almost certainly not him) wrote taunting letters in red ink to the media and the police signed with the catchy ‘trade-name’; and b) he was never caught and cannot definitively be identified. The Metropolitan Police may not be working the case, but the Whitechapel Murders of 1888 are still open, and therefore the Ripper might as well still be at large and dangerous. Because the mystery remains unsolved, he is still frightening. How much more frightening, then, is San Francisco’s Zodiac Killer — who took great pains (including swatches of a victim’s bloody shirt) to prove that he wrote his own letters to the press, has also eluded the police for decades since his first crimes, and might conceivably still be alive?

Part of the modern-day ritual necessary for taking on board any horror, from the average killing spree to the 9/11 attacks, is to get the facts of any case straight in a succession of chronicles — paperback true-crime bestsellers, couple of TV movies, and (eventually) a more considered cinema film. With Zodiac, this pattern is frustrated — we have the books and the movies, but there are crucial gaps in the intricate and exhaustive tapestry of hard evidence. Robert Graysmith, the doodler and puzzle addict who picked up the case when more official investigators had walked away, is convinced he knows who the killer was, and David Fincher’s film adaptation of Graysmith’s two books on the case eventually comes near to the same conclusion. However, there’s really no way (short of the silly detours into fantasy that afflict most Jack The Ripper movies) of providing the ‘closure’ demanded of Hollywood films by audiences, development executives and screenwriting guru Robert McKee. Therefore, Zodiac was fated from its inception to be an uncomfortable experience, a whodunnit with the last few pages torn out, a film biography of a faceless man.

Even something as incendiary as Spike Lee’s Summer Of Sam or as disreputable as the endless schlock biopics of Ted Bundy, Ed Gein, Jeffrey Dahmer and John Wayne Gacy are able to deliver approximately happy endings — they caught the bastards! In the two-and-a-half-hour haul of Zodiac, we see all the certainties of the serial killer genre shredded. David Toschi (Mark Ruffalo), the bow-tie-wearing cop on the case, is a model of West Coast cool whose manner of wearing a gun-holster was copied by Steve McQueen in Bullitt. If this were a conventional movie, he would catch the killer — but Fincher shows the confident supercop become a crotchety, tired, greying figure, quietly bereft when his longtime partner (Anthony Edwards) transfers to something nine-to-five like fraud. In a crucial sequence, Toschi attends a special premiere of Dirty Harry — which fantasised a shoot-out finale to kill off a villain modelled on Zodiac, who actually tries to carry out the schoolbus attack the real murderer merely threatened — and walks out in disgust, muttering, “Whatever happened to ‘due process’?” Paul Avery (Robert Downey Jr.) comes on like that epitome of 1970s radical chic cool, the underground journalist with a mainstream outlet, making brilliant leaps around the befuddled authorities and going after the Zodiac like Woodward and Bernstein went after Nixon. He ends up drinking himself out of a job and hiding out on a boathouse, still paranoid that the killer will come after him.

Though Ruffalo, Edwards and Downey Jr. are outstanding in their various crash-and-burn approaches to the case, the film is built around Jake Gyllenhaal’s Graysmith, a boyish outsider who makes a few connections no-one else does and later devotes his whole life to a private crusade, to the extent of roping in his preteen kids as research assistants. Gyllenhaal is excellent, but suffers through a few too many scenes with poor Chloë Sevigny — who gets stuck with the traditionally annoying Teri Garr-in-Close Encounters role as a wife who nags her husband about spending too much time on the business we’re interested in. As always, it’s impossible not to sympathise with the character — but audiences also wish she’d shut up and let Graysmith get on with tracking down that last stray witness and joining the dots no-one else has bothered with.

It’s a truism that serial killers are media creations, but Zodiac — who may have taken his name and symbol from a watch advert, was perhaps inspired by the 1932 movie The Most Dangerous Game, and wanted a lawyer who had guest-starred in a Star Trek episode to represent him — remains a phantom of the tube and newsprint. Murderers who are caught get shown up as pathetic human beings rather than Lecter-like masterminds, but Zodiac was either clever or lucky, and remains a phantom. Fincher offers us his creepy, misspelled letters in voice-over and brings a hooded form on for one of the killings, but the film’s most unsettling moments come when the possible Zodiacs are around: convicted paedophile Arthur Leigh Allen (John Carroll Lynch) or repertory cinema programmer Bob Vaughn (Charles Fleischer). As in Seven and Fight Club, Fincher boasts an unparalleled ability to present ostensibly friendly, deeply twisted people credibly — one of Zodiac’s few melodramatic moments, as Vaughn spooks Graysmith so much he flees the suspect’s house, works entirely because of the unnerving performances.

While this isn’t as straightforward as Panic Room, Fincher’s previous film, it lacks the highly wrought style of Seven and Fight Club — and the few holdovers from his earlier method (like the frequent California downpours which strike whenever the characters aren’t depressed enough) don’t quite match the less-showy All The President’s Men-like docudrama manner used here. Whole stretches are merely conventional, with hits of the ’70s on the soundtrack to counterpoint the killings and cop-shop or newsroom scenes that could have come from a TV show of the time, like The Streets Of San Francisco or Lou Grant. Wonderfully acted as it is, there’s still a sense that Fincher — who is evidently as hung up on Zodiac as James Cameron was on Titanic — is working a notch or two below what he is capable of. Screenwriter James Vanderbilt’s CV includes Darkness Falls, Basic and Welcome To The Jungle, and his draft really could have done with a brush-up from some less pragmatic talent to make this as deep and affecting as it is long and brilliantly detailed.

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'Myth of the Zodiac' Trailer Begs the Question: Did the Killer Really Exist? [Exclusive]

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Spooky Season Is Covered With These AMC Horror Titles Coming to Netflix

Gkids brings 'arcane' home this fall with collector's edition, 4k uhd, and blu-ray releases, how karen fukuhara gave kimiko her voice in ‘the boys’ season 4 finale.

From Jeffrey Dahmer to Ted Bundy , Ed Gein , and Randy Kraft , the United States has unfortunately come to know more than its fair share of serial killers over the last century. But, while all the aforementioned murderers were caught, there’s one case that will forever haunt the public. Known only as the Zodiac Killer, the person behind the mask of five slayings (that we know of) in the San Francisco Bay Area during 1968 and 1969 has never been apprehended - at least not for the murders.

A staple in true crime culture, the story of the mysterious phantom who stalked the streets, hillsides, and lakes of San Francisco has been the center of many Hollywood productions like the Jake Gyllenhaal , Mark Ruffalo , Brian Cox , and Robert Downey Jr. 2007 David Fincher -helmed thriller, Zodiac . And, while movies, books, and podcasts have set out to find the truth, the killer’s name is yet to be revealed. Now, one Zodiac enthusiast is hoping to crack the case by asking a question that no other person has brought forward - did the killer even exist?

Peacock’s latest two-part true crime docuseries, Myth of the Zodiac Killer , will jump into one man’s strong belief that the notorious slayer was merely a piece of American folklore. A new trailer released ahead of the series’ arrival sheds light on this bizarre theory as Thomas Henry Horan , an investigative journalist and the author of The Myth of the Zodiac Killer: A Literary Investigation by Thomas Henry Horan , and filmmaker Andrew Nock team up to get to the bottom of the riddle. Each taking different stances, with Nock staunchly standing by the one-killer theory and Horan testing his no-killer theory, the trailer sees the two men diving head first into the case . Because we know the murders took place, it’s unclear how Horan will line up his theory unless, like many others, his goal is to prove that there was more than one killer, thus solidifying that “The Zodiac” never existed.

RELATED: 10 Best Whodunits Of The 21st Century To Watch Before 'Glass Onion'

What Other True Crime Productions Does Peacock Have?

Earning a name for itself as a new home of true-crime documentaries, the network boasts an impressive lineup of interesting and well-thought-out titles. The current slate of originals includes Casey Anthony: Where the Truth Lies and John Wayne Gacy: Devil in Disguise , as well as a slew of content from networks such as Oxygen ( Violent Minds: Killers on Tape ).

Check out the trailer for Myth of the Zodiac Killer above and immerse yourself in the hunt when the two-part docuseries lands on Peacock on July 11.

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Ted Bundy 50 years later: How investigators took down infamous serial killer who terrorized country for years

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Sunday marks 50 years since Ted Bundy , one of America's most infamous serial killers, abducted two young women on the same day from the same crowded Washington state beach.

Although it was not the first time Bundy struck twice in one day, snatching the two women in a four-hour timeframe was among the most brazen acts of his years-long cross-country crime spree .

Although Bundy confessed to 28 murders, some estimate that he was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of women between 1974 and 1978.

TED BUNDY SURVIVOR REVEALS WHAT SAVED HER FROM SERIAL KILLER'S SORORITY-HOUSE RAMPAGE

Janice Ann Ott, 23, and Denise Marie Naslund, 19, both disappeared from Lake Sammamish State Park, about 15 miles from Seattle , on July 14, 1974.

Bundy killed both women that day, The Seattle Times reported , but their bodies weren't discovered for another two months.

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Bundy approached various women at the park, asking them to help him unhook his boat from his tan Volkswagen bug. Four female witnesses would later describe an attractive man wearing a white tennis outfit with his left arm in a sling who spoke in a slight, possibly Canadian accent and was overheard introducing himself as "Ted."

Three of the women refused; a fourth accompanied Bundy to his car, then ran after seeing that there was no sailboat.

TED BUNDY'S EX-GIRLFRIEND RECALLS HORRIFYING ENCOUNTER WITH THE SERIAL KILLER: 'HE JUST LAUGHED'

Ott, a juvenile caseworker at the nearby King County Juvenile Court, was seen by three witnesses leaving the park's beach with the man. Before she left her home on her yellow bicycle that day, Ott put a note on her door to tell her roommate that she was going sunbathing, drawing a doodle of the sun on her note, according to Friends of Lake Sammamish State Park. Her husband, James, was in California attending medical school.

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Naslund, who was studying to become a computer programmer, never returned from the restroom on a picnic with her boyfriend and another couple. Her mother would tell The Seattle Times that Naslund had the sort of helpful nature that could place her in danger.

King County police distributed a composite sketch based on descriptions of the man and his car, which was printed in area newspapers and broadcast on local television stations.

'PARALLELS OF EVIL': TED BUNDY SURVIVORS SPEAK OUT, LINKING THEIR GRUESOME ATTACKS TO BRYAN KOHBERGER'S

Bundy's girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer, his friend Ann Rule and one of Bundy's psychology professors from the University of Washington all recognized the composite and contacted police, according to King County Detective Robert Keppel's book, "The Riverman: Ted Bundy and I Hunt for the Green River Killer." But at the time, Rule wrote in her own book, detectives thought it was unlikely that the clean-cut law student was their suspect.

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Based on the description of the vehicle and the suspect, Keppel pored over thousands of automobile registration documents, The Seattle Times reported. Bundy was on the final list of potential suspects.

On Sept. 6 of that year, grouse hunters found skeletal remains near a service road in Issaquah, about two miles away – dental records showed that most of them belonged to Ott and Naslund, The Bulletin reported at the time.

Bundy later identified an extra femur and vertebrae found at that scene as those of Georgann Hawkins, an 18-year-old University of Washington student who went missing in the early hours of June 11 of that year while walking from her boyfriend's dormitory to her own, Keppel wrote.

Bundy later told journalist Stephen Michaud and FBI agent William Hagmaier that Ott was still alive when he kidnapped Naslund, and that he forced one woman to watch while he assaulted, then murdered the other. He later recanted that claim, along with others, in an interview on the night of his execution in 1989.

Before his capture, Bundy struck twice in one day once more on Nov. 8, 1974, first posing as a police officer and luring 18-year-old Carol DaRonch to his tan Volkswagen Beetle from a mall in Bountiful, Utah.

Bundy attempted to snap handcuffs onto the teen, but DaRonch was able to escape. A key that fit the lock to those cuffs was found in a high school parking lot where 17-year-old Debra Kent was last seen leaving a high school play to pick up her younger brother.

In 2015, a patella bone found in 1989 at the site where Bundy told investigators he'd left Kent's body was positively identified as the teen, Wired reported . After 40 years, her family finally got closure and a death certificate.

On Aug. 18, 1975, Highway Patrol Sgt. Bob Hayward stopped Bundy's tan Volkswagen, which was lingering outside a home in Granger, Utah.

After finding a ski mask, a crowbar, an ice pick and handcuffs in the car, the officer placed Bundy under arrest – but he was soon released.

In October of that year, DaRonch and two other women pointed Bundy out in a police lineup, leading to his arrest on attempted kidnapping charges, according to the Los Angeles Times . He was convicted of aggravated kidnapping in March 1976, The Deseret News reported at the time.

In October of the next year, while Bundy was serving that prison sentence, investigators were able to link Bundy to the January 1975 disappearance of Caryn Eileen Campbell with the discovery of her hair in his Volkswagen, The New York Times reported.

Campbell, a 23-year-old registered nurse, was last seen walking down a well-lit hallway between the elevator and her room at a Colorado hotel in January of that year; her nude body was found a month later next to a dirt road just outside the resort.

After he was charged with first-degree murder in Campbell's death, Bundy infamously escaped a law library at Aspen's Pitkin County Courthouse in June 1977, leading police on a six-day manhunt before his capture, ABC reported . He would escape a second time after losing enough weight to slip through a ceiling duct in his Colorado prison cell.

Before he was captured for good, Bundy killed two Florida State University sorority sisters and injured three more in January 1978, then killed 12-year-old Kimberly Leach.

Bundy was apprehended in February 1978, and his nationally televised trial began in June 1979. He was convicted in the deaths of the Florida State students on July 24, 1979, then for Leach's death in January 1980.

Bundy was put to death on Jan. 24, 1989 at Florida State Prison – the declaration of the killer's death at 7:16 a.m. drew cheers from the estimated 200 people in attendance, the Times reported.

Original article source: Ted Bundy 50 years later: How investigators took down infamous serial killer who terrorized country for years

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Against gossip & scandal, independent media network, global stories from local perspective, factual culture news, ‘zodiac’, ‘my friend dahmer’, & more: immortalizing american serial killers on film | true crime.

Grace Smith is a film critic and writer with 21 years of formative film exposure under her belt – and a focused interest in horror, surrealism, and substantial Cinema. Grace is passionate about The Hollywood Insider’s mission towards thoughtful and innovative media that expands audience perspectives towards entertainment. As a young writer and film-lover, Grace hopes to inspire readers towards not only broadening their horizons when it comes to cinematic media, but also raising their expectations.

Jan 31, 2022

Table of Contents

Photo: ‘Zodiac’ and ‘My Friend Dahmer’

While most people would hate to come face-to-face with these characters in real life, there’s just something about a killer on film. From the mystery of David Fincher’s ‘Zodiac’, to the bitter realism of ‘Monster’, to the warm-toned gore of ‘My Friend Dahmer’, these projects have invited audiences to learn more about the serial killers that litter our historical records through an artistic lens. With the aforementioned films, as well as ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ and ‘Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile ’, this article will explore some of the most acclaimed on-screen depictions of real-life American serial killers, and a brief examination of their origins in no particular order.

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American Serial Killers in Movies:

‘zodiac’ (2007).

The lasting legacy of the “ Zodiac Killer ” has been preserved by his perplexing mode of communication, as well as his iron-clad anonymity. Though in recent years, he’s allegedly been identified according to a team of cold case detectives (you guessed it: he was just some guy), an air of intrigue will always surround the idea of these random and senseless murders.

In the David Fincher -directed film, ‘ Zodiac ’ tells the story of a group of journalists at the San Francisco Chronicle that first encounter the strange ramblings of the killer, who threatens them into publishing his message. All-around great performances from an outstanding main cast – Jake Gyllenhaal , Mark Ruffalo , and Robert Downey Jr. – these characters are integrated into a pretty historically accurate depiction of the ‘Zodiac’ killings, the concerns that people had surrounding his messages, and the sense of mystery that permeated his covert reign of violence. As is expected for a Fincher film, the tone is air-tight and the dialogue is perfectly succinct. With not a performance out of line, ‘Zodiac’ is the embodiment of a taut true-crime thriller as the audience follows an impassioned ensemble through their obsessive investigation of a killer that remains shrouded in obscurity to this day.

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‘Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile’ (2019)

The name Ted Bundy has become completely synonymous with the idea of an unstoppable serial killer, our collective memory of him includes an image of charisma so deceptive that he could not only lure victims into his predatory grasp, but he could play the part of your average guy to his family and peers.

Zac Efron , especially when viewed in side-by-side comparison, bears striking resemblance to the notorious murderer. His committed performance is supported by Lily Collins , who portrays Bundy’s longtime girlfriend, Elizabeth Kendall, and their chemistry creates what might be a romanticized but engaging account of the relationship of one of the most depraved American killers.

‘My Friend Dahmer’ (2017)

Maybe Ted Bundy or John Wayne Gacy first come to mind, but when it comes to American serial killers, Jeffrey Dahmer is one of the most archetypal and infamous. Skinny, smart, stand-offish , and wrought by a desire to experiment on animals from a young age (guised in mere scientific interest), part of what made Dahmer so terrifying was his deceptive – though unstable – disposition. As is startlingly common for young, to-be killers, Dahmer was also considerably meek, and his descent into psychopathy proceeded under the radar of his family and friends. However, as ‘ My Friend Dahmer ’ imagines, sometimes unexplainable memories gain frightening clarity in hindsight.

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This film doesn’t explore the goriest details of his murderous, cannibalistic tendencies, instead, it dives into the core of his seemingly mundane Ohio upbringing. Ross Lynch , a former Disney-heartthrob known from ‘ Teen Beach Movie ’, portrays Dahmer as the slouching, awkward, covertly alcoholic class clown that he really was during his younger years. His portrayal is based on the comic book of the same name, written by John “Derf” Backderf (played by Nat Wolff in the film), who really grew up with Dahmer, and has lived insight into the years that would precede his depraved spree of killings.

‘Monster’ (2003)

While the jury is out on the moral culpability of Aileen Wuornos , she’s just as memorable as her counterparts, and since her alleged crimes of self-defense and subsequent death penalty conviction, she has remained the most infamous female serial killer among a sea of violent men.

Telling a much different tale than the mere brutal mystery of the other, male-dominated ‘serial killer’ themed movies on this list, ‘ Monster ’ turns morbid reality into a heart-wrenchingly raw depiction of a woman whose life was filled with trauma from beginning to end. Charlize Theron literally transforms into Wuornos, not only through strong makeup and styling, but an idiosyncratic performance for which she would win the Academy Award for Best Actress that year. In this film, Theron and supporting counterpart Christina Ricci explore a new layer to the story of Wuornos, one that pays respect to her authentic personality, mannerisms, and personal life.

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‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ (1974)

All of these films are wrought with violence and brutality in their own way, but ‘ The Texas Chainsaw Massacre ’ is often considered one of the paramount mainstream examples of ‘grindhouse’. Directed by Tobe Hooper , this film imagines a killer named ‘ Leatherface ’ who is modeled in the image of Ed Gein , an infamous, skin-wearing killer with devastating mommy issues. However, the 70’s slasher calls Gein too mindless for analyzing his psychology, and more for turning our stomach with the tendency of Leatherface to wear the skin of his victims. 

Ed Gein, also known as the “Butcher of Plainfield”, remains one of the more gruesome figures in American history. Not content with being a killer and body-snatcher, Gein fashioned an entire catalog of furniture out of the severed remains of his unfortunate victims. While similarities between the obvious behaviors of Gein and Leatherface may vary, their gory interest in repurposing the bodies of their victims will never not be so, so wrong.

By Grace Smith 

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Just a reminder, that the Black Lives Matter movement is about more than just police brutality and extends into banking, housing, education, medical, infrastructure, etc. We have the space and time for all your stories. We believe in peaceful/non-violent protests and I would like to request the rest of media to focus on 95% of the protests that are peaceful and working effectively with positive changes happening daily. Media has a responsibility to better the world and The Hollywood Insider will continue to do so.”

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Every ted bundy movie ranked worst to best (including no man of god).

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How Netflix's Ted Bundy Documentary & Movie Are Different (& Which Is Better)

Extremely wicked true story: what the ted bundy movie changes (& cuts), why hollywood is obsessed with ted bundy movies.

• Ted Bundy movies continue to be popular due to the morbid human fascination with real-life monsters like serial killers.
• Some films inaccurately exploit Bundy's story, while others take interesting approaches to examining his crimes and mindset.
• Movies like "American Boogeyman" and "No Man Of God" offer new perspectives on Bundy, showcasing the FBI's role in his capture.

The Zodiac Killer The biggest unsolved crime in American History

The 50-year-old mysterious identity of the Zodiac Killer is highlighted in The brand newe season of History's Greatest Mysteries with Laurence Fishburne features an enthralling array of cases like the 50-year-old mysterious identity of the Zodiac Killer. Tuesdays at 9pm.

When it comes to notorious American serial killers, certain names sit at the top of a hierarchy of infamy. Names like Ted Bundy, the handsome and clean-cut law student who slaughtered so many women, and John Wayne Gacy, the sadist and murderer who dressed as a clown at children’s parties. But one individual occupies a unique niche of notoriety, inspiring decades of fierce debate among criminologists, amateur sleuths and filmmakers alike.

Operating in California at the end of the 1960s, the Zodiac Killer had a relatively low body count compared to many other serial murderers. Yet his smug interactions with the police, his flamboyant and mocking persona (he even wore a special uniform to one crime), his penchant for setting riddles and the fact he was never caught all make him a fascinating phantom who still haunts the public imagination. It could be said he’s America’s answer to Jack the Ripper , a killer who struck several times and suddenly vanished, leaving behind letters and a trail of possible suspects.

The Canonical Killings

There’s some debate over how many victims the Zodiac had, partly because he liked to take credit for various crimes. But, as with Jack the Ripper, there is a list of “canonical victims” most experts agree on.

The Zodiac made his brutal debut in December 1968, swooping on a young couple, David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen, who were on their first date. Parked on a remote lovers’ lane, the pair were attacked out of the blue and stood no chance of escape. Faraday was shot in the head, while Jensen was gunned down as she tried to run from the car. The cold, execution-style slayings initially made local police think it may have been related to drug dealers in the area, but the crime would later be confirmed as the work of the Zodiac.

The next attack came in July 1969, and the MO was almost identical. The victims, Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mageau, were again a young couple parked on a remote road. While sitting in the car, they noticed another vehicle drive out of the night, park briefly behind them and then drive away. Minutes later, the car returned and stopped again. Its driver stepped out, wielding a bright torch, like a police officer. Then, without uttering a word, without a single warning, the man started shooting into the couple’s car. After this initial attack, the killer walked back to his car, only to suddenly return and fire more bullets into the bleeding couple. Darlene Ferrin was killed, but Michael Mageau miraculously survived the onslaught.

A few months later, in September of that year, came the most brazen and bizarre of the Zodiac attacks . It happened in broad daylight on the shores of a lake, where young couple Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard were having a lazy, languid day out. The calm was abruptly obliterated by the appearance of a man wearing a black, executioner’s hood bearing a striking symbol: a crossed circle, like a target, which would become known as the emblem of the Zodiac.

Aiming a gun at the couple, the man claimed to be an escaped convict, and put them at ease by saying he was just after their money and car to make a quick getaway. The couple were more than willing to comply, and Bryan Hartnell even made conversation, asking the “convict” questions about his past, and offering to help however he could. But, once the couple were tied up, the man’s true intentions became horrifically clear when he suddenly started stabbing them repeatedly. Cecelia Shepard would die, but Bryan Hartnell would fortunately survive, providing police and press with the description of their freakishly attired attacker. Before leaving the scene, the assailant used a marker pen to leave a message on the couple’s car door. He wrote the dates of the previous attacks, the date of this latest attack, and the chilling words: “by knife”.

One month later, in October 1969, came the last of the canonical killings, and the odd-one-out of the lot. Instead of preying on a couple in a secluded rustic setting, he chose a cab driver in the bustling heart of San Francisco. The driver, a young man called Paul Stine, picked up the killer and was shot in the head during the journey. Despite the urban context and presence of witnesses, the killer somehow melted into the surroundings, and – as far as many experts are concerned – would never strike again.

The Zodiac letters

Unlike many serial killers, the Zodiac dramatically altered his MO. First shooting couples in parked cars without any preamble, then appearing in a surreal uniform to engage in conversation before stabbing his victims, then randomly executing a cab driver. Police would probably never have linked the crimes if the criminal hadn’t begun a long series of communications which would cement his own morbid mythology in the public consciousness.

In August 1969, in the wake of the first two attacks, letters were sent to three California newspapers. They were almost identical, taking credit for the attacks on the couples. Each letter was accompanied by a section of a coded message, or cipher. The letters ordered each newspaper to print its section of the three-part cipher. If they didn’t, the killer vowed to go on a “kill rampage” and “cruise around all weekend killing lone people in the night”.

Known as the 408 cipher, because it contains 408 characters, the three-part message was indeed published in the papers, and flummoxed teams of official codebreakers in the FBI and US Navy. Another letter was then sent, beginning with the words “This is the Zodiac speaking”, giving us the name by which the killer would always be known. This letter taunted the police about their inability to crack the 408 cipher, but very soon after the riddle was solved by two ordinary members of the public, Donald and Bettye Harden.

The message was blunt. “I like killing people because it is so much fun,” it began, saying that hunting humans was a “thrilling experience” and would provide him with slaves in the afterlife. The Hardens were unable to decode the last part of the cipher, which remains a mystery to this day. Some still believe it’s some kind of opaque, unsolvable anagram of the Zodiac’s real name.

More letters were to come, accompanied by fabric torn from Paul Stine’s shirt – confirming the Zodiac was behind the killing of the cab driver. The Zodiac would also taunt and threaten the public, pondering a potential massacre of schoolkids, and suggesting how he might “pick off the kiddies as they come bouncing out” of a school bus. This fortunately never transpired, but provided the inspiration for the movie Dirty Harry, whose giggling villain – Scorpio – was a thinly veiled take on the Zodiac, and who was given the rough justice the real-life killer managed to evade.

Another significant communication from the Zodiac, and one which has had people scratching their heads ever since, came in November 1969, and contained a new cipher, 340 characters long. The 340 cipher has never been convincingly solved, though many have proposed solutions, and Zodiac sleuths still believe the key to his identity may lie locked within its maddening string of symbols.

The Cheri Jo Bates case

Outside of the “official” list, other potential Zodiac victims have been suggested over the years. The most prominent and likely is Cheri Jo Bates, a student who was murdered in 1966, years before the first canonical killings. On the night of her death, she had been studying in a library on campus, and was discovered early the next morning, beaten and stabbed. Her car had been tampered with, and it’s though the killer had approached her, offered her a lift and murdered her.

A month after her death, a confession letter was sent to police which detailed the killing and took sadistic relish in the act. It opened with the lines, “She was young and beautiful. But now she is battered and dead. She is not the first and she will not be the last.” A little time later, the grieving father of Cheri Jo Bates was sent a short, sharp note saying “She had to die there will be more”, signed with a strange letter that some people think could be a “z”.

Years later, as journalists and detectives suggested Cheri Jo may have been an early victim of the man behind the later murders, the Zodiac sent a letter which confirmed he had in fact killed the young woman, but whether or not he was falsely taking credit remains open to debate

The chief suspect

As with Jack the Ripper , there have been numerous suspects championed by different investigators in the decades since the last confirmed Zodiac murder. Among them, one particular suspect has inspired the most discussion and debate. He was Arthur Leigh Allen, a known child molester who was tied to the Zodiac case by a compelling array of circumstantial evidence.

Some of the evidence is flimsy – such as the fact that Allen wore a Zodiac-brand watch which featured the crossed circle symbol used by the killer on his hood and in his letters. More damning was the testimony of a friend named Don Cheney, who claimed Allen had openly talked about wanting to take on the alias “Zodiac”, murder people at random and taunt police while doing so. Arthur Leigh Allen was also identified as the killer by Michael Mageau, who survived a Zodiac attack, although Mageau’s vision was obscured by the killer’s harsh torch during his shooting, so his testimony isn’t all that reliable.

Arthur Leigh Allen was interviewed by detectives a number of times, and eventually died from natural causes in 1992. A decade later, crucial DNA analysis was carried out to compare Allen’s genetic profile to traces found on the Zodiac letters. There was no match, and despite the focus put on Allen in David Fincher’s 2007 movie Zodiac, he has been largely discounted as a suspect by most experts on the case.

And so the mystery continues. Who was the Zodiac? Why did he apparently stop killing just as seemed to be hitting his stride? Did he die himself, or is he still out there somewhere today, a seemingly harmless old man?

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Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile: History vs. Hollywood

What did Ted Bundy study in college?

In researching the Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile true story, we learned that Bundy obtained a degree in psychology from the University of Washington and went to graduate school at the University of Utah Law School in Salt Lake City. He would later use his background in law to defend himself at his murder trial . Ted Bundy (right) at his 1979 murder trial and Zac Efron (left) in the Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile movie.

When did serial killer Ted Bundy commit his first murders?

Women began disappearing in Seattle and surrounding areas as Bundy was finishing his undergraduate degree at the University of Washington in 1972. His earliest identified victim was murdered in Washington on January 31, 1974. Reports indicate that the women were last seen with a man named Ted. The trend continued when Bundy moved to Utah for his graduate degree in 1974.

Did Ted Bundy really meet girlfriend Liz Kloepfer at a college bar?

Yes. In the movie, we see Bundy (Zac Efron) meeting secretary Liz Kloepfer (Lily Collins) for the first time at a Seattle college bar in 1969. The real bar was the Sandpiper Lounge. Like in the film, Kloepfer was a single mom of a young daughter named Tina. Kloepfer became Bundy's domestic partner during the years that he was establishing himself as a prolific serial killer. They remained together for seven years. However, according to Ann Rule's book The Stranger Beside Me , Bundy dated "at least a dozen" other women while attending law school in Utah. Kloepfer dated other people as well. Top: The real Ted Bundy and girlfriend Liz Kloepfer.   Bottom: Zac Efron and Lily Collins as Bundy and Kloepfer in the Extremely Wicked movie.

In the Netflix Ted Bundy movie, is Liz Kloepfer's best friend Joanna based on a real person?

Yes. Joanna (Angela Sarafyan) was likely inspired by Marylynne Chino, Liz's best friend at the time, who was at the bar with her when she met Bundy. "He'd leave in the middle of the night when he was with Liz," says Chino. "Well, if somebody was at my house and they left and came back, I'd certainly question that. You know, what are you going out in the middle of the night for?" When Liz showed Marylynne the police sketch in the newspaper, she immediately recognized it as Bundy, at which point Liz burst into tears. They reported their suspicions to the police but were ignored.

Did Ted Bundy lure his victims by feigning an injury or pretending to be an authority figure like a police officer?

Yes. A 1992 multi-agency team report directed by the U.S. Department of Justice confirms what's seen in the Ted Bundy movie. The report states, "He would feign an injury and indicate he needed assistance or he would portray an authority figure such as a police officer. He thus persuaded the victim to voluntarily accompany him to his tan Volkswagen Beetle where he had secreted a crowbar near the rear of the vehicle. Upon reaching the vehicle, he would retrieve the crowbar and strike the victim over the head, rendering her unconscious. He would then handcuff her and place her in the passenger side of the vehicle, which he had modified by removing the seat." The report was based on interviews with Bundy while he was on death row. The tools of murder on the left were found in Ted Bundy's Volkswagen Beetle (pictured). The items included a crowbar that he used to daze his victims, a ski mask, an ice pick, trash bags, rope, gloves, pantyhose, etc.

Did Ted Bundy rape his victims?

Yes. The Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile true story confirms that Ted Bundy did rape many of his victims. However, it is unlikely that he committed only rapes. According to the 1992 Department of Justice report, "He was interested sexually in semiconscious or unconscious victims." Survivor Rhonda Stapley recounted him choking her to the point she was in and out of consciousness. He raped her repeatedly, and when he momentarily went back to his car (likely to retrieve his murder kit), she fled and fell into a mountain river, which swept her far enough away from him to save her life. Rhonda shares her harrowing story in her book I Survived Ted Bundy .  After being choked and raped, Rhonda Stapley survived Ted Bundy's attack when she fled and accidentally fell into a mountain river and was swept to safety.

How many women did Ted Bundy murder?

Like in the movie, the Extremely Wicked true story confirms that Bundy confessed to the murders of 30 females. However, his attorney, John Henry Browne, and others have stated that he could have killed as many as 100 women between 1973 and 1978, in addition to one man. "We may never know the total extent of his devastation," said former FBI Director William S. Sessions in 1992. Bundy's killing spree stretched across the country; he confessed to murdering 11 people in Washington, one in California, two each in Idaho and Oregon, three each in Florida and Colorado, and eight in Utah.  -People

Did a dog bark viciously at Ted Bundy?

No. In the movie, Ted and his girlfriend Liz go to the pound to look at dogs. A dog they're considering locks eyes with Ted and begins to bark viciously, which the couple later jokes about. This warning sign never happened in real life. Director Joe Berlinger said that the scene is fiction and that he did his "own interpretation of having some clues along the way."

Did Ted Bundy really have genuine feelings for girlfriend Liz Kloepfer?

Yes. The true story reveals that Ted Bundy's attachment to Liz Kloepfer in the movie is accurate. According to Kloepfer's 1981 memoir The Phantom Prince: My Life With Ted Bundy , his affection was genuine and he even panicked at the notion of losing her after he was arrested. The real Liz Kloepfer (left) and actress Lily Collins (right) as Kloepfer in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile .

Did Ted Bundy go back to his crime scenes?

Yes. According to the Department of Justice report, Ted Bundy made return trips to all of his crime scenes.

Did Ted Bundy's girlfriend, Liz Kloepfer, really believe that he was innocent throughout his arrests and trials?

Yes, and it is for this reason that we don't see any of the murders in the film until the movie's final minutes, at which time the truth is revealed to Liz. However, like in the film, despite Ted insisting he was innocent, Liz did have her doubts which she attempted to drown in alcohol. What's left out of the movie is that Liz noticed a few clues along the way that made her scratch her head. This included seeing crutches in Bundy's home (news reports described the suspect as having used a crutch to knock out a victim), him taking a crowbar from her house, her discovering a hatchet under the passenger seat of his car, and her finding plaster of Paris in his desk drawer (reports stated that the suspect used it to make an arm cast). The Netflix Ted Bundy movie is based on Liz Kloepfer's book, The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy , which she wrote under the pseudonym Liz Kendall. During Ted Bundy's execution interview , the serial killer said that he was "essentially a normal person." He had friends, a girlfriend, and was seemingly like everyone else. Like Zac Efron's character in the Extremely Wicked movie, the real Ted Bundy (right) kept his girlfriend Liz convinced that he was innocent.

Where did the title "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile" come from?

The title of the Ted Bundy movie is a reference to remarks made by Judge Edward Cowart (John Malkovich in the film) while sentencing Bundy to death . He called Bundy's murders "extremely wicked, shockingly evil and vile."

Did Bundy give Liz the French prison-escape novel Papillon as a gift?

No. In the movie, Bundy keeps telling Liz about author Henri Charrière's prison-escape novel Papillon . He even gives it to her as a gift when she comes to visit him in prison. In real life, Liz never mentions Papillon in her memoir. Instead, it seems to be a symbolic element added to the movie to give Ted hope that he will one day get out of prison.

Did Ted Bundy escape by jumping from a second-floor courthouse window?

Yes. It might seem far-fetched, but in examining the Extremely Wicked true story, this actually happened. Ted Bundy was taken into custody in 1975 and was convicted of the kidnapping and attempted murder of Carol DaRonch. Several months into his prison sentence, he was charged with the murder of a Colorado woman named Caryn Campbell. The murder trial was held in Aspen, Colorado and Bundy was transferred to Garfield County jail in Glenwood Springs, Colorado prior to the start of the trial. He managed to escape by jumping from a second-floor courthouse library window while acting as his own attorney. He was recaptured eight days later. Ted Bundy really did escape by jumping out of a second-story courthouse window.

Did Ted Bundy really escape twice?

Yes. Just six months after his leap out of the Aspen courthouse window, he escaped from jail in Glenwood Springs using a hacksaw blade given to him by other inmates. He had cut a one-foot square in the steel reinforcing bars in his cell's ceiling and was able to wiggle his way into the crawl space above. Though it's not shown in the movie, Bundy had spent four months losing roughly 35 pounds in order to fit through the ceiling crawl space. He appeared gaunt at the time. Yet, we see no weight change in Zac Efron's character in the film. Bundy escaped on the night of December 30, 1977 while most of the jail staff was on Christmas break. He piled books and files under his covers to make it look like he was sleeping, and it took guards until noon the following day to realize he was missing. He took a bus to Denver, flew to Chicago, and eventually made his way to Tallahassee, Florida. As indicated in the Netflix Ted Bundy movie, it was there that he committed some of his most savage acts of murder.

Is Haley Joel Osment's character, Jerry, based on a real person?

No. "Jerry is an invented character who is just sort of in the position of trying to pull Liz out of the Bundy black hole," Osment said at Sundance, "and to sort of try to get her to envision a life beyond him" ( IMDb ). While there was no real colleague named Jerry who she turned to, in her memoir, she eventually confides in a man she calls Hank who she met at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. Haley Joel Osment's character, Jerry, who tries to make Liz see the truth about Ted, is fictional.

How was Ted Bundy captured?

Like in the Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile movie, the true story confirms that Ted Bundy was captured following his murder spree in Florida when Pensacola police officer David Lee noticed that Bundy's Volkswagen Beetle was stolen. After being told he was under arrest, Bundy kicked Lee's legs out from under him and took off running. Lee fired two warning shots and gave chase, tackling Bundy. They wrestled for Lee's gun but Lee subdued him and took him into custody. In Bundy's Volkswagen were the IDs of three female FSU students, in addition to other stolen items.

Did bite marks on one of his victim's buttocks do him in?

Yes. Bundy inflicted the bite marks during his murderous 1978 killing spree at Florida State University's Chi Omega sorority house, where he bludgeoned four women with a piece of oak firewood. Two of the women died from their injuries and authorities were able to match bite marks on one of the deceased women's buttocks to castings of Bundy's teeth.

Why did it take so long for Ted Bundy to be caught for his murders?

Even though the 1970s weren't that long ago, forensic science has come a long way since then. For example, DNA profiling wasn't used by law enforcement until the late 1980s (it was first accepted as admissible in U.S. courts in 1988), roughly a decade after Bundy's final arrest. The real Ted Bundy (right) in Tallahassee in July 1978 during his triple murder indictment. Zac Efron as Bundy in prison in the Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile movie.

Did admirers really ask Bundy to autograph his own 'Wanted' posters?

Yes. Bundy very much took on the persona of a celebrity, and as mentioned in the movie, the Extremely Wicked true story confirms that admirers did ask him to autograph his own 'Wanted' posters.

Did Ted Bundy represent himself during his murder trial in Florida?

Yes. In performing our fact-check of the Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile  Ted Bundy movie, we confirmed that this part of the film is largely accurate (in part because there is footage of the trial ). The former law student acted as his own attorney after brushing his state-appointed council aside. It was the first nationally televised trial in America and Bundy became the star of the show. He indeed wore a blue blazer and a large, dark bowtie, as if he was a performer (or a used car salesman) ready to sell the audience on his innocence. Ted Bundy (right) acted as his own lawyer during his Florida murder trial. Like Zac Efron in the movie, many people in the public believed his act and thought he was innocent.

Did Ted Bundy really propose to Carole Ann Boone while he was on trial?

Yes. Carole Ann Boone was an old friend of Bundy's from his days working at the Department of Emergency Services in Olympia, Washington. They had worked there together for six years. During his 1979 murder trial in Florida, Bundy, who was representing himself, questioned Boone about their relationship. It was at that time that he straight-up asked her if she wanted to marry him. She said yes. See footage of Ted Bundy's courtroom proposal . Their daughter, Rose, was conceived in prison and was born in 1981/1982. She is believed to be Bundy's only child. Boone divorced Bundy in 1986, three years prior to his execution.

Did Ted Bundy really tell Liz Kloepfer the truth in person?

No. Director Joe Berlinger admitted that the in-person encounter at the end of the film is fictional. Ted Bundy actually revealed the truth to former girlfriend Kloepfer during a phone call, not in person at the prison. "The phone call is far less dramatic than a final real-life confrontation," Berlinger told Collider at Sundance, "but the emotional truth of what occurred in that conversation, whether it's done in person or versus a phone, you're going for the same emotional truth. That's my philosophy anyway." According to Kloepfer, unlike the movie, Bundy never directly admitted his guilt to her. He told her that "there is something the matter with me ... I just couldn't contain it. I've fought it for a long, long time ... it got too strong." When she asked him to clarify, he responded, "Don't make me say it." He never did and the phone call ended. Unlike the movie, Ted Bundy hinted at the truth over the phone. He didn't give Liz the exact answer she needed to hear like in the film, nor did he do it in person.

Did Ted Bundy ever try to kill girlfriend Liz Kloepfer?

Yes. In real life, Kloepfer asked Bundy this during their final phone conversation. He admitted that he once closed the damper on her chimney so that the smoke couldn't escape while she was sleeping off a night of drinking. Before he left the house, he also put a towel against a door to further trap the smoke. In her memoir, Kloepfer says that she remembers waking up coughing.

When was Ted Bundy executed?

For his crimes in the state of Florida, Ted Bundy was executed by way of Florida's electric chair on January 24, 1989 at age 42.

Watch Ted Bundy take the stand in this footage from his 1979 murder trial in Florida. Also witness Judge Edward D. Cowart deliver Ted Bundy's death sentence.

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The title of Joe Berlinger's "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile" comes from the famous post-sentencing remarks of Judge Edward Cowart to Ted Bundy, America's most notorious (to this day) serial killer. Cowart called the killings "extremely wicked, shockingly evil, vile and the product of a design to inflict a high degree of pain and utter indifference to human life." What is so interesting about Berlinger's film is how strongly it resists showing Ted as "wicked" or "evil." Bundy is never shown committing a crime. We are left instead with a terrifying void, the void of Bundy himself, a blank space where a human being should be. Knowing the details of Bundy's life—his shame at being born out of wedlock, for example—only takes us so far. Lots of people are born out of wedlock. Only one became Ted Bundy. Refusing to explain Ted Bundy is the strongest possible choice Berlinger could have made because it destabilizes reality. The film itself gaslights us, and this is where Berlinger and Zac Efron —an inspired choice—are powerful co-creators. 

Loosely based on  The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy , the memoir of Bundy's long-time girlfriend Elizabeth Kloepfer (played here by Lily Collins ), "Extremely Wicked" starts in Elizabeth's point of view. A single mother, holding down a secretarial job, Liz expresses to a friend her insecurities about finding a man. What man wants a woman with a kid? A predator like Ted Bundy is quick to sniff out insecure women like Liz. She meets him at a bar, and he charms her. Easily. She brings him home. They don't have sex. The next morning, she finds him in the kitchen with her baby daughter, and he's making breakfast, wearing a yellow apron. Liz can't believe it. Is this guy too good to be true?

How something happens is more important than what happens, particularly in a story where the details are well-known. "Extremely Wicked" mixes Liz's point of view with Bundy's, but there are some crucial differences in approach. Berlinger puts us inside Liz's growing terror that she's been living with the guy who maybe did the horrible things she's seeing on the news. Their happy relationship, shown in home movie footage, is intercut with extant local news reports of girls gone missing in the area, girls showing up dead, two brazen abductions in broad daylight. The police sketch released to the public looks kind of like her boyfriend, but Liz can't be sure. Berlinger follows Bundy, too, but in the Bundy sequences, we only see his outer behavior, what he does . This captures Bundy's opaque quality, the sense you get of a camouflage hiding his true nature. Bundy insists—with increasing aggravation—that he has been wrongly accused. 

A lesser film would have intercut the happy home scenes with scenes of Bundy killing college co-eds, just to remind us of Bundy's evil. A lesser film would have provided flashbacks to his childhood, in an attempt to explain why. Instead, we are banished from his secret life, just like Liz is banished from it. We see him as she sees him, and he is a dazzlingly disorienting figure. This is what Efron taps into; this is what Efron understands. 

Efron became a child star when a generation of girls lost their minds over "High School Musical." (Teenage girls are often the first to recognize who will be the Next Big Thing, and their screams of ecstasy are ignored or mocked. But teenage girls picked out Elvis Presley , they picked out Sinatra, they picked out Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson . Maybe, instead of belittling teenage girls' frenzies, we should follow the sound to see what the fuss is about.) Efron's transition from teen idol to adult actor has not always been smooth. His performance in the Seth Rogen comedy "Neighbors" had strangely deep stirrings, and critics took note. He was exhilarating in " The Greatest Showman ," because he got to sing and dance. (Classic Hollywood would not have been confused about what to do with Efron.) 

As Ted Bundy, Efron gets to use his natural assets—his face, his body, his charisma—and he gets to use them full-bore. Often really beautiful actors feel the need to "ugly" themselves up in order to be taken seriously. Efron so far has resisted. He has old-school movie star wattage and an ability to project his essence through the screen. Using his animal charm in service of Ted Bundy is so disturbing, but it works in subtextual ways, providing the "missing piece" when people ask why and how Bundy could have happened. It's hard to be as charming as Efron is. Try it and see for yourself. Efron doesn't telegraph to the audience Bundy's sinister motives, he does not distance himself from Bundy's charming modus operandi. His smokescreen is impenetrable. There are moments when Efron looks so much like Bundy (especially with the beard), it is truly eerie, but it's more than just an outer transformation. Occasionally, there is a brief glimpse on his face of what Bundy's victims probably saw in their final moments. But Efron is in charge of when and how we get to see it. It deserves to be called a thrilling performance.

Kaya Scodelario plays Carole Ann Boone, Bundy's girlfriend during his imprisonment in Florida. Recently, the news broke that Christopher Watts, who killed his pregnant wife and two children in 2018, was being bombarded by love letters from women around the country. It's a bafflingly common phenomenon, and Scodelario, in a very intelligent performance, suggests why. If there's a void in Bundy, there's a void in Carole too. Liz's descent into alcoholism is handled well by Collins, as is the intervention of a co-worker, played by Haley Joel Osment . John Malkovich rules the roost as Judge Cowart, making Cowart's famous words bristle with real ethical loathing. The courtroom scenes lack some of the dizzying charge of other sequences, maybe because it's a re-creation of well-known footage (the entire trial was televised, a first of its kind). 

Ted Bundy was executed in Florida on January 24, 1989, making this year the 30th anniversary of his death. Similar to the glut of Manson movies this year marking the 50th anniversary of the Tate-LaBianca killings, Bundy is suddenly everywhere. In January, "Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes" dropped on Netflix, a four-part documentary also directed by Berlinger, featuring Bundy's 1980 tape-recorded conversations with two journalists while on death row. Many seemed disturbed at the focus on Bundy's looks, as though mentioning his handsomeness was akin to endorsing his diabolical crimes. A month or so later, the first trailer for "Extremely Wicked" dropped, and the online reaction was negative. According to its critics, the trailer glorified Bundy, it glorified Efron's cuteness. What was fascinating about all of this, and why I'm mentioning it, was that these conversations were basically replicating the media firestorm back in the 1970s, when the horror of Ted Bundy's killing spree became known. The focus on his looks struck many as unseemly back then, too. Women showed up in court for his trial giggling like they were at a Stones concert. People were horrified. Here it all was, playing out again in 2019.

There will always be those who want art to declare its intentions with neon signs pointing down like "This is bad. Don't do this." "Extremely Wicked" rightly resists such declarations and it refuses to offer explanations. You don't ask why a tornado or a tsunami is destructive. You don't dig into a grizzly bear's past to understand why it attacks. You just know these things are dangerous and you need to avoid them. If you want to understand why Ted Bundy got away with what he did for as long as he did, watch Efron flirt with Collins in the scene where the characters first meet. Look for signs of Bundy's malevolence. Squint for evidence of his evil. You won't find it. Neither did Liz. That’s why it’s terrifying. 

Sheila O'Malley

Sheila O'Malley received a BFA in Theatre from the University of Rhode Island and a Master's in Acting from the Actors Studio MFA Program. Read her answers to our Movie Love Questionnaire here .

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Film credits.

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (2019)

Rated R for disturbing/violent content, some sexuality, nudity and language.

108 minutes

Zac Efron as Ted Bundy

Lily Collins as Elizabeth Kloepfer / Liz Kendall

John Malkovich as Judge Edward Cowart

Kaya Scodelario as Carole Ann Boone

Jeffrey Donovan as John O'Connell

Angela Sarafyan as Joanna

Jim Parsons as Larry Simpson

Dylan Baker as David Yokum

James Hetfield as Officer Bob Hayward

Haley Joel Osment as Jerry

• Joe Berlinger

Writer (based on the book: "The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy" by)

• Elizabeth Kendall
• Michael Werwie

Cinematographer

• Brandon Trost
• Josh Schaeffer
• Marco Beltrami
• Dennis Smith

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Shockingly Evil: Zac Efron as notorious serial killer Ted Bundy

The Sky Cinema original production follows the trial of Ted Bundy and his relationship with his long-term girlfriend.

By Gemma Peplow, arts and entertainment reporter

Friday 3 May 2019 08:24, UK

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Zac Efron has spoken about how he got into the psyche of serial killer Ted Bundy at the premiere of his new film about the notorious US murderer.

The Hollywood star spoke to Sky News on the red carpet for Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil And Vile alongside his co-star Lily Collins, who plays his long-term girlfriend, Elizabeth Kloepfer (called Liz Kendall in the film).

After maintaining his innocence for years, Bundy finally confessed to the murders of more than 30 women and girls across several states in the 1970s before his execution in 1989. However, it is believed the real number of victims is still unknown and that the real number could be far higher.

For Efron, who is best known for films including the High School Musical series, The Greatest Showman and Hairspray, playing the infamous Bundy was a very different challenge.

"We had a plethora of footage, so much source footage from his different trials," he told Sky News. "There was a lot to go on.

"I worked on studying his mannerisms and all the classic stuff… There was a fine line between keeping it a real, honest character and doing an impersonation. It was a fair amount of work."

Handsome, intelligent and charismatic, Bundy was the monster hiding in plain sight; how could a man who was so charming, so good-looking, be capable of such evil?

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That was how many saw him.

Rather than depicting the gruesome horrors of his crimes, the film tells the story from Liz's perspective, and is based on Ms Kloepfer's book, The Phantom Prince: My Life With Ted Bundy.

For years, she refused to believe he was guilty, and the film shows how easily the killer was able to manipulate those around him.

Collins, who met Ms Kloepfer as part of her research, told Sky News this was the reason she decided to take on the role.

"I wouldn't have signed on if it was a conventional slasher serial killer movie," she said. "It's too sensitive a subject matter with Liz being involved to do that. I think to pay tribute to her story it needed to be something different.

"It felt necessary to tell in that way, otherwise it was like telling the same story over and over again."

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Director Joe Berlinger, who also produced the recent Netflix documentary series Conversations With A Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, said Efron took some "cajoling" to take on the part.

"He wanted to make sure we weren't just doing some gratuitous movie," he said.

"The reason I wanted Zac to play the role is that the lessons of Bundy can't be overstated. Bundy teaches us that the people who do evil in this world are the people you most often trust and who you least expect.

"To take that [Zac's] image and play with it in that way to me crystallises the intent of the film, which is to give the audience the experience of being deceived and betrayed by someone you know and love."

Berlinger said he wanted to take Efron's "real-life persona of a beloved heartthrob" and use it so that the audience "almost forgets" they're watching a film about Bundy.

The director said there had been "a million" serial killer movies where you see "an escalating body count and gruesome violence" but he had not seen one about "how serial killers function when they're not killing".

He continued: "That's an important aspect because we want to think a serial killer is some dark guy who's a social outcast, who doesn't fit into society because that gives us the false comfort that we can easily identify somebody who does evil.

"By telling the story from a victim's point of view, from somebody who believed in him, I think we're able to portray that phenomenon."

:: Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil And Vile is out in cinemas and on Sky Cinema from 3 May

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Which Zodiac Signs Has the Most Serial Killers?

By Aayush Sharma

In recent years, true crime has turned out to be one of the most fascinating genres. Be it feature films, TV shows, or documentaries, viewers flock to the theatres or streaming services to watch them. People often tend to know about what happened and why it happened.

That’s why serial killers like Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, and more are always trending on search engines and social media platforms. However, people are not only interested in knowing about the crime but also want to know about these horrifying criminals.

Recently, a website called Astrology Zodiac Signs conducted research and gathered information to see which zodiac signs has the most serial killers. The publication researched almost 500 serial killers to understand which zodiac sign might be the most lethal. With this unique research, scientists got an idea about which zodiac sign might be “overrepresented” among some of the deadliest serial killers in history.

Names of the zodiac signs

During the research, scientists discovered that four signs— Pisces, Cancer, Sagittarius, and Scorpio —account for almost 40% of serial killers. On the other hand, serial killers born under the sign of Capricorn had the highest number of victims in total, per NBC10 Boston . They killed more than 800 people. The analysis also discovered that Pisces, Cancer, Sagittarius, and Scorpio dominated the list, with each of these zodiac signs accounting for 46 serial killers. As a whole, the mentioned signs contribute to 38% of all serial killers in the research.

Samuel Little and Gary Ridgway are considered two of the most dangerous criminals. So, it doesn’t seem surprising that people want to know about their zodiac signs. Little belongs to the zodiac sign of Gemini, while Ridgway is the most prolific serial killer belonging to the sign Aquarius. On the other hand, Ted Bundy is the  most notorious killer  belonging to the zodiac sign of Sagittarius.

John Wayne Gacy (Pisces), Donald Harvey (Aries), Bill Longley (Libra), and Jeffrey Dahmer (Gemini) are also in the list.

Entertainment Journalist by profession and a complete cinephile, Aayush Sharma has been writing about Hollywood movies, US TV shows, True Crime and more from the last 7 years. Previously, he has worked for reputed media outlets such as ANI, International Business Times, and MEA Worldwide.

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What is Ted Bundy’s zodiac sign? The serial killers’ birth chart explored.

Ted Bundy is one of the most notorious serial killers of our time, but for all the world, he kept up his image as a well-mannered, clean-cut law student. It is a mystery as to what could have caused a life filled with so much potential to go so wrong — could the fault lie in Bundy’s stars?

When the term serial killer is mentioned, Bundy is one of the first names that comes to mind. There is a good reason for that, the term serial killer didn’t even exist before Ted Bundy. It was coined to describe someone who seemed to crave murder like the next installment in a television show. Someone who was always searching for something, some sort of resolution or satisfaction, but never finding it, causing them to murder over and over again.

So, what could have driven this deep-seated, unmet need in Ted Bundy? Was it something that he didn’t get from his difficult childhood, a fault in his mind or nervous system, or perhaps it was written in his stars? Here’s what we found out.

What is Ted Bundy’s zodiac sign?

Interestingly enough, the majority of serial killers fall within four specific zodiac signs and Ted Bundy was no exception. He was born on Nov. 24th, 1946, making him a Sagittarius.

Sagittarius is a fire sign that is represented by the symbol of the archer. It is a sign that values travel, philosophy, and higher education, all things Bundy appeared to be drawn to. They are often social, free-spirited, and artistic – also traits Bundy embodied. Yet there are some other less positive attributes that the zodiac sign can sometimes bring to the table.

Sagittarius as a fire sign can be prone to bursts of temper, as its fiery playmates are Aries and Leo. Also, compared to the other signs, Sagittarians are especially more prone to impulsivity. They tend to follow their passion, good, bad, or otherwise. The thought of consequences or long-term repercussions is not always part of their thought processes. Ted Bundy seemed to demonstrate this tendency, especially in his later years.

Ted Bundy’s birth chart explored

According to AstroSeek, Ted Bundy’s Mars placement is also in Sagittarius. Mars is the planet of war, aggression, and conflict and it shows up in his fourth house, the house of home and family. In fact, Bundy has six planets in the house of home and family, which in any chart, is quite crowded. It can indicate that his sense of anger, aggression, and incense could have originated within his family. It could even paint a history of aggressive tendencies in his lineage, which according to reports, checks out.

Ann Rule, the famous true crime writer and former friend of Ted Bundy conducted an extensive study into Bundy’s family of origin. She discovered many reports that his grandfather (who was also rumored to be his biological father) was supposedly a very violent man. Bundy was raised by him for several years, thinking his mother was his sister before she finally took him and left the family home.

Bundy also has the sign of Scorpio falling into his fourth house of home and family. Scorpio is the sign of death, transformation, the subconscious, and what lies beneath. It represents our shadow aspects, secrets, and our subconscious drives and desires. The fact that his lineage contained dark family secrets is not surprising with his fourth house partially in this sign. Also, as symbolized by the scorpion, Scorpio can be prone to retaliation, vengeance, and revenge, often lashing out when provoked.

The women in Ted Bundy’s life

The planet of Venus is also in the sign of Scorpio in Ted’s fourth house, particularly indicating darkness and secrets around the feminine presence in his life. All this combined can be interpreted to mean that there were secrets and aggression in his lineage, which were showing up in his subconscious and in how he related to women. Ted held a great deal of anger towards his mother for her deception, so could he have been taking out that rage on all women? Lashing out at the women who rejected him, the way he felt his mother did? Many, including Ann Rule, felt that his upbringing drove his behaviors and his chart certainly indicates that is a possibility.

Finally, Bundy has the point known as the Black Moon Lilith in his house of home and family. Paired with Venus, it shows the light and dark aspects of the feminine, the demure and passive, and meets the outspoken and empowered. The presence of both could indicate conflicting feelings towards women. Bundy could have felt both great kinship and respect for women, while also harboring anger towards some of their darker qualities. It was a confusing aspect of his life as he murdered at least 36 young women but also held multiple long-term intimate relationships.

He had a years-long relationship with Liz Kendall as portrayed in Netflix’s Extremely Wicked Shockingly Evil and Vile , who also had a young daughter. He then married Carole Ann Boone after years of dating and had a daughter with her. Neither of those women nor their children were harmed. He held a close friendship with Ann Rule, who was even described as a “touchstone” for him, someone he greatly admired.

He was also known to describe his mother in contradicting terms, sometimes applauding her as a single mother who cared for him, other times feeling rejected by her and angry at her choices. His chart would indicate this conflicting dynamic and feeling towards women, all stemming from his home and family.

Ted Bundy was a notorious serial killer who murdered many women. Could these tragedies have been prevented by peering into his birth chart? Unfortunately, while his chart does provide an insight into his motivations and life setup, the choice to become a murderer was Ted Bundy’s, not his stars.

19 Best Serial Killer Films on Netflix to Watch Right Now

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The widespread popularity of serial killer films like Hannibal , The Texas Chain Saw Massacre , Saw , Halloween, and others demonstrate people’s fascination with tales centered around psychopathic killers and macabre narratives . While serial killer films may be sickening or disturbing, there is an undeniable allure in watching these deranged murderers systematically target their victims, even as they justify their actions with irrational reasons. It is not that viewers approve of their aberrant behaviors, but there is that certain intrigue that lies in observing these gruesome acts from the comfort of their own homes.

For those who love to indulge in these dark tales for the fear and excitement they evoke, Netflix has as excellent a selection of serial killer films as they do hit serial killer documentary miniseries. From knife-wielding, masked murderers to cults engaging in sacrifice, this streamer has a wide variety of grim killer flicks. Considering they've brought in folks like David Fincher to direct in-house serial killer movies , for some of the following entries Netflix is the only place viewers are going to find them.

Updated on July 9th, 2024, by Jessica Peerez: This article has been updated with additional content to keep the discussion fresh and relevant with even more information and new entries.

19 The Abandoned (2023)

The Abandoned, a film chronicling a string of gruesome murders, has been referred to as a must-watch and has gone on to be nominated for a noteworthy 12 Taipei Film Awards. With a cast comprising Janine Chun-Ning Chang, Ethan Juan, and An Shun Yu, the film made its debut in September 2023. The Abandoned is directed by Tseng Ying-ting.

A Classic Thriller Delving Into the Mind of a Killer

The Abandoned centers on an intriguing plot, beginning with a foiled suicide attempt by police officer Wu Jie. Instead of taking her own life, she is led to the body of a woman washed ashore. The unidentified body has both a finger and her heart missing. With a fair share of action and drama, the film delves into the mind of a serial killer who hunts victims who are illegally in the country, thus making them easy prey. Making the film one of the best on Netflix is the fact that, in addition to chronicling the acts of the killer, focusing more on his mental state than the acts of killing itself, The Abandoned also sheds light onto the plight of immigrant workers who are employed for the most minuscule wages.

18 Mrs. Serial Killer (2020)

A crime film with a novel twist, Mrs. Serial Killer follows the wife of an alleged serial killer as she goes to extreme lengths for her husband. An Indian crime film that keeps up Netflix's Bollywood partnership , it was produced by legendary Bollywood filmmaker, Farah Khan, and stars the popular Sri Lankan model and actress, Jacqueline Fernandez.

A Brilliantly Twisty Plot

Fernandez plays a woman named Sona who's married to a doctor and pregnant with his child. With a serial killing murderer on the loose in the area, a police officer links the cases of six missing women to Sona's husband. He's arrested and the town's people soon all lose respect and turn on him. Sona believes her husband is being framed by the officer since she once rejected his love In favor of her husband. In desperation to save her husband, the pair concoct a plan for Sona to murder another woman in the same manner as the serial killer while he's in jail, effectively clearing his name.

17 The Weekend Away (2022)

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