Zac Efron is ‘Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile’ as serial killer Ted Bundy
Zac Efron has signed on to star as notorious American serial killer Ted Bundy in Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile.
The film, fully financed and being introduced to buyers at Cannes by Voltage Pictures, will be directed by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Joe Berlinger (Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills) and written by Michael Werwie (A Rose Reborn).
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile is based on the true story of Theodore Robert Bundy, who committed 30 homicides across seven states between 1974 and 1978. Bundy was put to death in Florida’s electric chair in 1989, admitting to many of his crimes hours before his execution.
The thriller will be told from the perspective of Bundy’s long-term girlfriend, Elizabeth Kloepfer. Having initially spent years denying his crimes, she eventually handed him into the police. It was only at that point that the extent of his depravity was revealed, both to her and the rest of the world.
Production Timeline and Basis
Principal photography began January 18, 2018, in Covington, Kentucky, after the original October target shifted. The production moved quickly once financing closed, and the completed film runs about one hour and fifty minutes. The screenplay draws directly from Elizabeth Kendall’s memoir The Phantom Prince: My Life with Ted Bundy, which supplied the first-person framework that shapes every scene.
Full Cast and Key Crew
Lily Collins plays Elizabeth Kendall, the woman whose viewpoint anchors the narrative. Kaya Scodelario, John Malkovich, Jim Parsons, and Haley Joel Osment fill out supporting roles that trace Bundy’s legal team, family members, and victims. Joe Berlinger directed, bringing his experience with long-form true-crime documentaries to the feature format while Michael Werwie handled the adaptation.
Release and Distribution
The film premiered January 26, 2019, at the Sundance Film Festival. Netflix acquired U.S. rights for roughly nine million dollars and rolled out the title on May 3, 2019, with limited theatrical play in select markets. The picture remains available to stream on the platform worldwide, completing the path from pre-production announcement to finished release.
Reception and Critical Response
Reviews landed mixed overall, yet critics repeatedly singled out Efron and Collins for carrying the material. Many noted that framing the story through Kendall’s eyes gave the film its clearest distinction from earlier Bundy portrayals, shifting focus onto the slow realization of his crimes rather than spectacle. The performances earned the strongest notices, even as some reviewers questioned the limits of the chosen perspective.
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile stands as a completed biographical crime drama whose timeline, cast, and platform are now fully documented. The project moved from announcement to Sundance premiere to Netflix release without further sequels or expansions, leaving a single, contained account of one of the most scrutinized criminal cases in modern American history.
