Chad Michael Murray to Play Ted Bundy in New Movie

Chad Michael Murray is set to portray a very famous figure in American Boogeyman. According to Screen Daily, Murray will play serial killer Ted Bundy in American Boogeyman, which Voltage Pictures recently secured worldwide rights to. The film will release later this summer.

American Boogeyman will feature a unique take on Bundy’s story, as the film is based on the untold story of the detective and FBI rookie who tracked down the killer. In addition to Murray, the cast also features Lin Shaye, who has appeared in the Insidious franchise, and Holland Roden from Teen Wolf. The movie, which is currently in post-production, was written and directed by Daniel Farrands, who worked on both The Haunting of Sharon Tate and Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers. The production team includes Farrands, Lucas Jarach, Daniel Davila, who will all be producers on the project.

Fans likely know Murray from projects such as One Tree Hill or A Cinderella Story. He most recently appeared on The CW’s Riverdale. American Boogeyman will release in theaters on Aug. 16. Following its release, Voltage and Dark Star Pictures will navigate the downstream rights of the film. Jonathan Deckter, the COO and president of Voltage Pictures, released a statement about the film and, in particular, Murray’s starring turn as Bundy.

“Ted Bundy is such a fascinatedly divisive character and is the true personification of evil,” Deckter said. “Murray is so talented and expertly captures Bundy’s charm and seductive nature, traits that the notorious killer exploited to win the trust of his victims as well as society. It’s fantastic to continue working with the very gifted Lucas and Dan on this feature and bring engaging narratives to the screen.” Even though there have been many who have voiced their excitement over Murray’s portrayal of Bundy, there are others who have criticized this picture for offering yet another look at the infamous killer.

According to PEOPLE, many have taken to social media to voice their concerns over the latest Bundy biopic. American Boogeyman will be released about two years after Netflix their own take on the story, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile, which starred Zac Efron in the titular role. One social media user criticized the most recent take on Bundy by asking, “Do we *really* need another movie on Ted Bundy? Like really?”