[PRESS RELEASE]

The role of serial killer Andrew Cunanan in season two of the FX anthology series American Crime Story was more than a challenge for actor Darren Criss— in a sense, it was his destiny. In the latest issue of emmy magazine, the series’ creator Ryan Murphy describes how Criss and the rest of the hand-picked, all-star cast embodied the real-life characters in The Assassination of Gianni Versace. 

The award-winning official publication of the Television Academy hits newsstands May 22.

In the emmy cover story “American Tragedy,” Murphy shares his fascination with Gianni Versace and how the murder of the renowned fashion designer became the focus of the highly anticipated second season of the popular anthology. Murphy took great care to ensure the project was as authentic as possible, from gathering all related law-enforcement files as source material to casting appropriate actors in each role. 

In Murphy’s mind, Criss was destined to play Cunanan, who shared a similar Filipino-American heritage. “I didn’t want to whitewash that part,” says Murphy, aware of Hollywood’s tendency to cast Caucasian performers in Asian roles. “I had been obsessed with the Cunanan and Versace story for years and years and years. And I remember when I first cast Darren on Glee back in 2010, just filing it in the back of my head. Like, ‘Well, there’s your Cunanan.’”

Filling out the ensemble cast, Murphy secured his preferred actors for each role—Édgar Ramírez as Versace; Penélope Cruz as the designer’s sister, Donatella; and Ricky Martin as Versace’s lover, Antonio D’Amico.

Martin and Cruz reached out to D’Amico and Donatella Versace, respectively, to help them approach their roles. In Martin’s case, his conversations with D’Amico provided important social context and helped him better understand the LGBTQ experience in Versace’s era. 

“Gianni struggled with coming out because people were like, ‘You’re going to destroy your career,’” Martin says. “So it was a flashback to my reality, my story.”

In May Emmy Magazine Ryan Murphy Talks Casting of The Assassination Of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story and Why Darren Criss Was Preordained for His Role