Theodore Robert Bundy: the name behind the man that bewildered everyone nearly fifty years ago and stirs controversy when mentioned today. More commonly known as Ted Bundy, the infamous psychopath who confessed to murdering thirty women, reclaimed the spotlight after Netflix released a series centering around his gruesome crimes.

Since the release of Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, consumers worldwide have been in a constant state of debate about whether this interpretation of Bundy’s character is accurately represented by producers.

Is giving this deranged man fame today vital to allow society to advance?

Or is this motion counterproductive and opens an outlet for some to eulogize a monster?

With posts flooding Twitter from users like @anniellewellyn claiming, “[not gonna lie] I have a thing for Ted Bundy, the sexy psycho,” it seems that by supposedly glorifying this situation, it normalizes this aberrant behavior.

In the first episode, victims, law enforcement, and citizens display their shock when informed that Bundy was accused of executing such horrendous crimes. Someone in the trailer adds that,“He just doesn’t look like the type to kill somebody.”

Consumers have mentioned that by having characters restate that Bundy was not a stereotypical sociopath, it oversexualizes him and disregards his actions.

This is the supposed “glorification” that people refer to.

The realistic portrayal and perspective behind Bundy illustrates the inaccurate belief amongst the public that he was an innocent victim trapped in a serious misunderstanding.

By stressing this idea, this conveys the harsh reality that beautiful people are capable of terrible things.

Attaching a personal connection to this loss of innocence from Bundy’s victims can contribute to making viewers aware of this and benefit them later on if they are met with a master manipulator.

Later, Bundy communicates with law enforcement in an egotistical manner. He recalls events and alleged crimes in a detailed, arrogant third-person perspective.

Many are quick to claim that by giving Bundy this exposure, we are promoting his crimes and handing him the fame that his egotistical persona craves.

However, critics often do not stop to consider the victims.

Each victim has a story to tell, and if Bundy’s story was eliminated, their stories and messages would as well.

Bundy is unworthy of recognition, but the victims need to be heard, and the world needs to be aware of how this situation came to be.

There is no glorification present in this controversial show. Nothing can possibly be glorified about a twisted man who shortened innocent lives. Unidentifiable killers will always be amongst us. To conclude, Bundy himself asks, “How can people live in a society where people they liked, loved, lived with, worked with and admired could next day turn out to be the most demonic people imaginable?”