“That is squarely on the shoulders of Netflix.Penn Badgley returns as charismatic killer Joe Goldberg in season 4 of Netflix’s You, but the actor is criticizing the streamer for the romanticization of real-life murderers, specifically, Jeffrey Dahmer.
In a TikTok with Entertainment Tonight, Penn had an unambiguous message to those who find serial killers attractive. “You need to look at that, inside,” he said, pointing to his chest. But he did take some responsibility for the fascination over his character in You.Now to be fair, with our show, you’re meant to fall in love with [Joe],” he said. “That’s on us.”
“Ted Bundy? That’s on you,” Penn added, as an image of Zac Efron as the notorious serial killer in Netflix’s Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile popped up.Jeffrey Dahmer? That is on… that is on Netflix,” he continued. He was close to saying “you” here, but the actor quickly changed course and placed the blame on the streaming giant. “That is squarely on the shoulders of Netflix.”
“I don’t have answers at this point,” Penn concluded about the unusual phenomenon. “I do, but they're long… Yeah, it’s weird man.Netflix’s DAHMER – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story was one of the streamer’s biggest yet most controversial series. The Ryan Murphy-produced show starred Evan Peters as the cannibalistic serial killer, who murdered 17 Black, Asian, and Latino men from 1978 to 1991. It faced a great deal of backlash from Netflix subscribers and the families of victims, who criticized the show for the glamorization of Dahmer and his gruesome killings.
Penn, who’s starred as Joe Goldberg (or as he’s known in season 4, Professor Jonathan Moore) since 2018, has long been critical of the infatuation over his character. In 2019, he responded to a series of tweets that thirsted for the fictitious killer, according to Insider. When season 2 premiered, Penn clearly expressed his disdain for Joe in an interview with Vanity Fair.
“We can't lead ourselves to believe that if Joe would simply find the right person that he would be happy,” he said. “Because he’s a f**king murderer.”
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