‘Wicked City’: True Story Inspired ABC’s Sexy TV Show Based On A Serial Killer

Wicked City is a riveting and sexy new TV series that is based on a true story. Slated to premiere on ABC tonight, Wicked City is a fascinating cop procedural that follows several Los Angeles, California, detectives who are investigating a rash of murders happening on the Sunset Strip. Many will recognize that Wicked City appears to be partially based on the crimes of serial killer Douglas Clark and Carol Bundy — the Bonnie and Clyde of that era. Although, if you look closely at ABC’s teaser for Wicked City, it states that the show centers around one unique murder case that happened in 1982. Old news articles show that the true Sunset Killers (Doug and Carol) were arrested in 1980. It appears that producers may have played around with the timeline a bit to obscure the true story. Still, this sounds a lot like Clark and Bundy’s story.

In any case, Wicked City will be quite a treat for old crime fiction fans and true-crime story buffs. ABC viewers are also in for an amazing lineup of talented actors. The cast stars Erika Christensen as Betty Beaumont, Taissa Farmiga as Karen McClaren, Gabriel Luna as Paco Contreras, Ed Westwick as Kent, Anne Winters as Vicki Roth, Karolina Wydra as Dianne Gibbons, Olivia Moss as Mary, Evan Ross as Diver Hawkes, and Jeremy Sisto as Jack Roth, according to The Internet Movie Database (IMDB).

Filmed in Los Angeles, California, and produced by Mandeville Production and ABC Studios, Wicked City is set in 1982 on Sunset Boulevard, also known as the Sunset Strip. The show takes us on a ride back to a time in L.A. where sex, drugs, and rock and roll ruled the glitzy but gritty streets. People were looking for something — anything — that would make them feel good. It was also a time where some of the most gruesome serial murders took place, which evoked tremendous fear in the people of Sunset Blvd. In short, Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip became known as the serial killer capital of the world.

In Wicked City‘s first episode, we meet the handsome Kent, a charismatic but dangerous man who sets his sights on the needy and impressionable women who all had dreams of making it big in Hollywood. We also meet Kent’s new woman, Betty, a passive young lady that becomes overtaken by Kent’s charms. Before long, she is willing to do absolutely anything for Kent, including helping him kill young women. What will make this show slightly uncomfortable, aside from all of the violence, is the soft and caring way that Betty and Kent deal with small children. In real life, the real Doug and Carol had a way with children, too.

Carol Bundy, a woman who was especially cunning, once worked as a nurse. Her friendly manner made people feel completely comfortable with her. And this is exactly how they obtained their victims. Louise Farr, a book writer, spoke about how Doug Clark and Carol Bundy could easily entangle a person in their world, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“I had a terrible time sleeping afterward… I made the mistake of spending too long a time with Doug and Carol. I would spend several hours. They’re manipulators. They’re manipulating all the time. After you leave you have the feeling something’s been done to you.”

Indeed, die-hard true-crime lovers will find Wicked City entertaining, truthful, and nostalgic. And there will be lots of great music, to boot. You definitely won’t want to miss tonight’s pilot. Just a reminder, viewers of Wicked City should be at least 14 years of age due to themes ranging from violence, murder, serial killers, and prostitution. Running time on this is 42 minutes. The Inquisitr reported on a similar show entitled Aquarius, which was based on the crimes of Charles Manson.

Wicked City on ABC trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4Iz3hwOh08

[Image via Wicked City/Facebook]