The second installment of American Crime Story after 2016’s The People vs. O. J. Simpson was less immediately arresting. But its depiction of ’90s America is just as impressive, tracing the circuitous route of serial killer Andrew Cunanan backward from his most famous victim through a gay scene struggling not to be forced back in the closet. Darren Criss’s work as Cunanan is masterful.
2. THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY (SoHo)
The latest American Crime Story adaptation is a misnomer, as it follows (mostly in reverse chronological order) the life of Versace’s murderer, Andrew Cunanan. But as played in a tour de force and award-worthy performance by Darren Criss, Cunanan’s and Versace’s (Edgar Ramirez) interwoven stories are riveting and revealing, a study of the lives and struggles of gay men in the 1990s. At times difficult to watch, the portrait of the spree killer is gilded and fascinating, gorgeous and off-putting from beginning to end.
3. THE ASSASSINATION OF GIANNI VERSACE: AMERICAN CRIME STORY
The first season of American Crime Story set an impossibly high bar for later editions of Ryan Murphy’s latest anthology series. While The Assassination of Gianni Versace seemed like the perfect follow up to The People v. O.J. Simpson, the former never quite lived up the hype of the latter. That is essentially a shame—and perhaps its misleading title is to blame. While the 1997 murder of the Italian fashion designer does kick off the season, it’s hardly its focus; instead, serial killer Andrew Cunanan is the leading player as the show follows him on his three-month murder spree across the United States. Darren Criss delivers a phenomenally unhinged performance as Cunanan, bringing humanity to the sociopathic character who left behind little explanation of his motives. —Tyler Coates
Prolific producer and director Ryan Murphy was recognized at last week’s VH1 Trailblazer Honors for highlighting queer stories in projects like The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, The Normal Heart, and his latest hit, Pose.
Now his full acceptance speech has been released online, and watch as Murphy tells the audience about his years as an out gay man in Hollywood where he was told he was “too weird, too faggy, too unusual.”
“My mannerisms and voice were mocked by executives in notes meetings,” he adds.
When he was about to give up on his dream of making it in the entertainment industry, Murphy got a call from another television pioneer, someone he calls one of the original trailblazers: Norman Lear.
The All in the Family and One Day at a Time creator told Murphy not to give up. “I see you. Keep going,” he told him.
Watch as the Glee creator talks about being inspired by older women, creating the Half Initiative, and how the upcoming episode of Pose directed by Janet Mock is “perhaps the best hour of television in my career that I have been associated with.”
The Performance: Leave it to Ryan Murphy to spot that Glee’s teenage dream could also be The Assassination of Gianni Versace’s 27-year-old nightmare. There has perhaps never been a better match of performer and real-life subject matter than Darren Criss and serial killer Andrew Cunanan. Like Cunanan, Criss is a Filipino American with an inherently magnetic charisma. Whether sauntering into a house party in a red leather jumpsuit or coldly committing a brutal murder, Criss is as a hypnotic, heartbreaking, and, above all, terrifying anchor for the series. —Caroline Siede
Also Great: Penelope Cruz, Cody Fern, Finn Wittrock, Judith Light
If “The Assassination of Gianni Versace” earns an Emmy nomination for Best Limited Series, as Gold Derby’s racetrack odds predict, that would be the seventh consecutive nomination for prolific producer Ryan Murphy in this category. Over the past decade Murphy and his team at FX have completely reinvented TV’s longform format, and that’s no more evident than at the Emmys. Previously these six shows all received Emmy noms for Best Limited Series: “Feud: Bette and Joan” (2017), “The People v. O. J. Simpson” (2016), “American Horror Story: Freak Show” (2015), “American Horror Story: Coven” (2014), “American Horror Story: Asylum” (2013) and “American Horror Story: Murder House” (2012).
Based on Maureen Orth‘s book “Vulgar Favors,” “Versace” follows the story of spree killer Andrew Cunanan (Darren Criss) who murdered several men in the 1990s including fashion designer Gianni Versace (Edgar Ramirez). Tom Rob Smith wrote the nine-episode series that also stars Emmy contenders Penelope Cruz, Judith Light, Ricky Martin, Cody Fern, Finn Wittrock and Jon Jon Briones.
Not to be forgotten, two other Ryan Murphy Productions also earned Emmy bids in the top races: “Glee” as Best Comedy Series in 2010 and 2011 and “The Normal Heart” as Best TV Movie, which prevailed in 2014. His landmark FX series “Nip/Tuck” was shockingly snubbed at the Emmys as Best Drama Series, though it did triumph in that same category at the Golden Globes in 2005.
In terms of Emmy wins, Murphy has one for directing the “Glee” pilot and three for producing “The Normal Heart,” “The People v. O.J. Simpson” and its short form counterpart “Inside Look: The People v. O.J. Simpson.” On this year’s Emmy ballot he’s eligible for producing “9-1-1” and “American Horror Story: Cult” in addition to producing and directing “The Assassination of Gianni Versace.”
Sixteen out of 19 of Gold Derby’s Emmy Experts from major media outlets don’t just think “Versace” will be nominated, but that it will win. They are: Debra Birnbaum (Variety), Debbie Day (Rotten Tomatoes), Eric Deggans (NPR), Lynn Elber (Associated Press), Joyce Eng (Gold Derby), Pete Hammond (Deadline Hollywood), Chris Harnick (E), Matthew Jacobs (HuffPo), Tom O’Neil (Gold Derby), Lynette Rice (Ent. Weekly), Robert Rorke (New York Post), Matt Roush(TV Guide Magazine), Anne Thompson (Indiewire), Peter Travers (Rolling Stone), Ken Tucker (Yahoo) and Adnan Virk (ESPN). See more Emmy odds and rankings.
As one of TV’s most successful storytellers, Murphy is using his influence to try to change Hollywood for the better. He recently created the Half Initiative, which strives to make the entertainment industry more inclusive by creating equal opportunities for women, minorities and the LGTB community behind the scenes. “We started with the directing end of my company. We started with the hope of 50% or more. Now, actually, our average is running like 60% female,” he told our sister site Deadline.
To borrow a conceit from Community, we’re living in the darkest timeline. Pick a day and chances are there will be another dystopian-sounding news story. From unsettling meetings with North Korea to reports of children being forcibly removed from their families by our government, 2018 has proven to be a horror show… And the best television of the year has captured that. So far this year’s best shows have been about a serial killer (The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story), a dictatorship that imprisons and rapes women (The Handmaid’s Tale), and deeply warped race relations (Atlanta and Dear White People). 2018 has been great for television, and horrible for everyone’s mental health.
Playing a villain in a way that the audience admires isn’t an easy task. Especially, when it’s based on a horrible person like Branch Davidians leader David Koreshin Waco. While the category – Lead Actor in a Limited Series – will most likely go to Darren Criss’ portrayal of Versace’s killer Andrew Cunanan – Kitsch still deserves the recognition.
7. “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” (FX) OK, fine, we can all agree — not as good as “O.J.” But there were many pleasures here, almost all in the craftsmanship. The performances were uniformly good, while lead Darren Criss turned in a superb one — and possibly an Emmy-winning one, too.
1. ‘The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story’ Episode 4: “House By the Lake”
With its fourth episode, The Assassination of Gianni Versace emerged as the show it had been trying to be. Without the gaudy trappings of the Versace family, producer Ryan Murphy and writer Tom Rob Smith turned their narrative eye towards the unbearably tragic murder of David Madson.
Darren Criss (as Andrew Cunanan) and Cody Fern (as Madson) turn in searing performances as killer and victim, respectively, anchoring the episode even as it takes a few flights of fancy. — Joe Reid
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