Image via Netflix
During a panel over the weekend, Evan Peters described the complex process that went into his portrayal of Jeffrey Dahmer for the Netflix series Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.
Peters spent four months training for the part, paying close attention to every physical characteristic of Dahmer to give the best possible portrayal. “He has a very straight back. He doesn’t move his arms when he walks, so I put weights on my arms to see what that felt like,” he explained, per Variety. “I wore the character shoes with lifts in them, his jeans, his glasses, I had a cigarette in my hand at all times.”
Peters admitted he initially wasn’t sure about accepting the role of what he considered to be an “incredibly dark” character. “I really went back and forth on whether I should do it or not,” he said. “I knew it was going to be incredibly dark and an incredible challenge.” However, once he took on the role, Peters went deep, and according to series co-creator Ryan Murphy, “basically stayed in this character, as difficult as it was, for months.”
Niecy Nash, Peters’ co-star, recalled trying to talk to him when production began but finding him to be “in his process.” Nash acknowledged that she wanted to respect his way of doing things, but she also kept him in her prayers since she was aware of the emotional strain that comes with portraying a difficult character.
“I wanted to respect that and I wanted to keep him there,” Nash explained. “I prayed for you a lot, for real, because this is weighty. And when you stay in it, and you’re tethered to the material, like bone to marrow, your soul is troubled at some point. And I could see him getting tired. I just said, ‘Well, I’m just gonna make sure I keep him in my prayers, because this is a lot and he wants to do it justice.’”