Paramount debuted its latest documentary series Handsome Devil: Charming Killer on January 20th, which is a three-part docuseries about the killer Wade Wilson. Nicknamed the Deadpool Killer due to the fact that his name is exactly the same as the Marvel character, Wilson became the talk of the internet due to other reasons. Despite being arrested for the brutal murders of two women, he garnered an online following once his mugshot circulated the internet.
Killers having a fanbase is nothing new. [Primarily] women fawned over Ted Bundy – not even believing that the infamous serial killer could commit such heinous crimes due to his “good looks”. Wilson is in the same position – he’s a conventionally attractive man who has fans online swooning over him. And obviously, this is upsetting – especially to the loved ones of the victims. Even something like the titular documentary is looked at with criticism. Should we even be highlighting someone like Wade Wilson? Especially with such an insensitive title.
It’s no secret that we are obsessed with True Crime. Even I frequently watch Body Cam videos and tune into YouTube channels like Law & Crime to see what’s the latest in human debauchery. While the Wade Wilson documentary series is causing an uproar, the creation of the series doesn’t surprise me. Nor does it surprise me that the algorithms on social media have essentially pushed the narrative of this killer being a “good looking” man.
Before Wade Wilson, we had Jeremy Meeks. A former Crips member whose 2014 mugshot went viral online, his mugshot inspired a Twitter hashtag called #feloncrushfriday and he has since gone into modeling due to the attention he received. So, people have long romanticized criminals and have looked past their crimes just because they’re deemed attractive. Would someone like Luigi Mangione have so many online supporters if he weren’t good-looking?
Wade Wilson will probably be better known for his looks and charisma than for taking the lives of two young girls. While we watch documentaries on him, scroll through his court appearances online, two family members will forever have to live with the fact that these women are never coming home. They will have to see that people on the internet fawn over the man who took these girls from them. That he is gaining internet virality, while they planned funerals for Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz.
As someone who regularly enjoys a true crime documentary, this is something that I’ve had to contend with as well. It’s easy to get caught up in the mystery of the case and digest the story, but at the core of everything, you’re only able to watch this story because something brutal happened to another human being. There are families still mourning out there while we consume this content.
Currently, Wilson sits on death row in Union Correctional Institution in Florida. His face may have gone viral, and people may have deemed him attractive, but he will still spend the remainder of his life in prison awaiting the death penalty for the killings of two innocent women. Just as he deserves.
A girl with too many fandoms to count.
