Evan Peters Says Jeffrey Dahmer Preparation Took 'So Much Negativity'

Evan Peters is opening up about how he would get into character as the star of the wildly popular Netflix series Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. The actor recently appeared in a roundtable with some of his fellow Dahmer actors and Ryan Murphy, the show's co-creator.

The real Jeffrey Dahmer was a Milwaukee-based serial killer who murdered 17 young men and boys from 1978 to 1991, according to Biography. Many of his victims had been members of LGBTQ communities of color.

Netflix posted the roundtable to its YouTube channel on Monday.

After Murphy asked Peters what he did to prepare for the challenging role, the actor detailed his research process.

"I did a lot. I guess I watched as much as I could," Peters said. "I watched all the footage I could find—the interviews, courtroom—I sort of studied how he moved, and you know, he had a very straight back. He didn't move his arms when he walked."

"And you wore lead weights around your hands at times, correct?" Murphy asked.

"I did," Peters replied. "In the beginning, it was important for me to get kind of how that felt; as we were shooting, I let that go."

Dahmer premiered on Netflix in September. Many fans binge-watched the morbid series, but it also received tons of backlash over allegations that it retraumatized victims' surviving family members.

During the roundtable, Peters described how he wore much of the same wardrobe to get into character and "had a cigarette in my hand at all times." He added that he wanted to get those factors to feel like "second nature" to avoid having to think about them while filming.

The actor further stated that he worked with dialect coaches to perfect Dahmer's unique accent. He also said he listened to a "45-minute audio composite" each day to help get into the killer's mindset.

At one point during the roundtable, co-star Penelope Ann Miller compared Peters' "commitment to this role" to Oscar-winners like Marlon Brando, Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.

At another point, actress Niecy Nash-Betts—who played Dahmer's neighbor, Glenda Cleveland—asked what it was like for Peters to "come out" of the role. The actor answered that while he pushed himself to the limit and gave it "120 percent," he also knew that he would need to "decompress" afterward.

"I haven't worked since we shot this. So I tried to really shake it all off," Peters replied. "I went back home to St. Louis a lot, saw my family a lot, friends—just tried to decompress. Watched Stepbrothers, changed up the psyche." Richard Jenkins, who plays Dahmer's father in the series, also starred in the 2008 comedy Stepbrothers.

Peters continued: "I put in so much negativity and darkness to portray the character that I just thought: 'OK, once this is done, all that goes away, and I have to get back into the light and start filling myself back up with comedies and romance and all sorts of things like that.'"

A representative for Peters declined Newsweek's request for additional comment.

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