Peacock to Premiere Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy Oct 16, 2025

Peacock will premiere Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy, an eight-episode limited series that reframes the notorious 1970s Chicago murders through the lives of victims, their families and the investigators who pursued answers, on Thursday, October 16, 2025. All eight hourlong episodes will be released simultaneously on the streamer, which requires a subscription to view the series.

The drama centers on John Wayne Gacy, who between 1972 and 1978 abducted and murdered 33 young men and teenage boys, many of whom were buried in the crawl space beneath his suburban Illinois home. Rather than centering on Gacy’s crimes, the program’s creators say the series highlights the victims’ stories, the grief of their families and the investigative work that exposed systemic failures that allowed the murders to continue for years. Showrunner Patrick Macmanus said the production deliberately avoided sensationalizing the killings and did not depict the murders onscreen. "We really, truly were trying to focus on the victims, what their lives were like and who they truly were," Macmanus said.

Michael Chernus portrays Gacy. The ensemble cast also includes Gabriel Luna as Detective Rafael Tovar,...