The Hillside Strangler: Devil in Disguise Docuseries Gets Trailer From Peacock
Back in the '70s, Los Angeles was tormented by a killer who earned the nickname the "Hillside Strangler," a moniker that was created as many victims were found in the hills of southern California. Initially believed to be one individual, it was later determined that two people were responsible for the heinous crimes, cousins Kenneth Bianchi and Angelo Buono Jr. The new docuseries The Hillside Strangler: Devil in Disguise on Peacock aims to investigate the tragedy and shine a new light on the events, which could paint an entirely different picture of the crimes from what viewers thought they knew. Check out the trailer for The Hillside Strangler: Devil in Disguise below before it premieres on Peacock on August 2nd.
The series is described, "The Hillside Strangler: Devil in Disguise, a four-part docuseries premiering August 2nd on Peacock, offers a new, in-depth peek inside the minds of notorious serial killing cousins Kenneth Bianchi and Angelo Buono who allegedly impersonated off-duty police officers to lure unsuspecting victims to their deaths before leaving their bodies to be found on the hillsides of East Los Angeles during the 1970s.
"In 1979, in Bellingham, Washington, at the time of his arrest for the murders of two local women, Bianchi was not a suspect in the hillside killings. However, due to similarities in both the Washington and California murders, not to mention Bianchi's recent departure from Los Angles, investigators began to consider his connection to the cases. When questioned, Bianchi flip-flopped back and forth, alternately denying and confessing to multiple killings in the LA and Washington areas. During his confessions, Bianchi purported to have a split personality and claimed some of the killings were committed by an alter-ego. Bianchi also began implicating his cousin Angelo Buono as a second suspect in the LA killings. He later convinced an innocent woman to attempt murder on his behalf in an effort to create an alibi.
"The Hillside Strangler: Devil in Disguise raises new questions around the psychology of Kenneth Bianchi, was he a cold-blooded killer who conned those in his orbit, or a madman coerced into confession? Or is it possible, as Bianchi has claimed in recent years, that the truth may be even more complex? The series takes a deep dive into Bianchi's psychological analysis tapes and features audio recordings from the months following his arrest, leading up to his conviction. This four-part series features new and exclusive interviews with those close to the case, including Bianchi's former girlfriend at the time of the Los Angeles killings, Sheryl Kellison."
"What excited us most about this project was the new angle into Kenneth Bianchi's mental state at the time of his arrest and how it directly affected the outcome of the case, which sparks the question of whether or not justice had been served in the end," Stephanie Steele – SVP, Current Production NBCU Television and Streaming, shared in a statement. "In addition, the series highlights new voices that provide fresh insight into the uniquely troubling story of how these two men wreaked havoc on the people of Los Angeles in the late '70s."
The Hillside Strangler: Devil in Disguise premieres on Peacock on August 2nd.
Are you looking forward to the new series? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!