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Although the actions that he pairs with his belief system will receive plenty of pushback from fellow members of his religion, the infamous serial killer, Richard Ramirez, was a self-proclaimed Satanist who committed heinous murders in the name of his spiritual leader. Today, in an exclusive to Collider sneak peek for the upcoming Peacock docuseries, Richard Ramirez: The Night Stalker Tapes, audiences will hear directly from the murderer as he talks about his bond with Beelzebub. Revealing that he started his faith journey as a Christian, Ramirez says that it wasn’t until he was in his early 20s that he shifted his focus. The change in belief came when he arrived in California, where he “met a guy” who introduced Satan into his life. In the killer’s own chilling words, “Satan is a stabilizing force in my life. It gives me a reason to be. It gives me an excuse to rationalize.”
Largely thanks to the media, Ramirez gained a name for himself as a Satanist following his arrest for a spree of murders committed in the Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay Area during the mid ‘80s. From one crime scene to the next, each of his sadistic and brutal slayings was more ghastly than the next, with seemingly no rhyme or reason behind his choice of victim. After his eventual capture (in which numerous LA citizens chased him down and held him in place until the police came), Ramirez would roll up to court with a pentagram (the sigil of Satanism) carved into his hand. His outward declarations for the devil only further stoked the flame of intrigue when it came to his case.
What Else Can Audiences Expect from ‘Richard Ramirez: The Night Stalker Tapes’?
Along with dipping into the Satanic aspect of Ramirez’s life, Richard Ramirez: The Night Stalker Tapes, promises - at the very least - to attempt to answer some questions surrounding the “why” of it all. Using plenty of never before heard Death Row interviews from the killer himself, plus video interviews with those closest to the killer - including his wife - the production will give audiences a very unique look into his life. It will start at the beginning, following his young life in El Paso, Texas to what brought him to California where he would commit his crimes - oftentimes returning home to the infamous Cecil Hotel covered in bloody clothing. There are plenty of background puzzle pieces that go into the creation of a monster, with Ramirez’s abuse-filled childhood and his admiration of his morally abhorrent older cousin all certain to come into the mix.
Check out our exclusive sneak peek of Richard Ramirez: The Night Stalker Tapes above and tune into Peacock on December 10 for the two-episode docuseries’ premiere.
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