You can't ask for a story that is so ready-made. I kind of wanted there to be three hours more of that, but when I was listening to it with some friends, they were putting their hands over their heads and saying No, no, no! They never turned it off though, which I think is telling, but it seemed like they were having a hard time listening. Dr. Death executive producer explains how Christopher Duntsch could Theyre not just props in your story, they are real people whove lived this, and you need to just be respectful of that, and not fall into tropes, and not exaggerate what theyve been through, but also not diminish it. Dr. Death: Patrick Macmanus on Understanding Christopher Duntsch "License to Kill" and "Botched" host advises on how - YouTube Duntsch agreed by voicemail to an interview for this story on Wednesday, but did not return subsequent calls for comment. You have to be spare and selective with the details. In the meantime, prosecutors were working with Kirby and Henderson to find a way to indict Duntscha challenge, considering Texas had never previously handled such a case. On paper, Duntsch was a star pick for any hospital system once he completed his residency, thanks to years of research and study of the use of stem cells and several strong recommendations from his prior supervisors. I wanted to make it easy for myself. Duntsch was offered a $600,000 advance and a temporary suite in a luxury hotel to come to Dallas while the couple searched for a new home in Plano, according to a 2018 "Dr. Death" podcast, which inspired the Peacock series. And that was a revolutionary act. By the time we get to Jeff Glidewell, its horrible. He's a psychopath. When he woke up, he was a quadriplegic with incomplete paralysis. D MagazineChristopher Duntsch a.k.a. How much of his crazy emails and phone messages did you have to throw out in order to focus on the main story? Duntsch, hes an outlier for sure, but he exposed a lot of larger truths about the healthcare system. And you know, the hope and dream is that the generation that comes up behind me, it seems inconsequential whether it's all women, all men or a blend of something in the both. 'Sociopath' Surgeon Duntsch Arrested for Shoplifting Pants This attitude and outlook stuck with Duntsch as he set out to achieve something beyond football and landed on surgery. Hed had a whole string of bad surgeries before it even came to the attention of the medical board. A new crime drama called "Dr. Death" is inspired by the true story of Dr. Christopher Duntsch, a Texas surgeon who was said to have intentionally maimed 32 patients during surgery, two of whom. I needed to establish its not just that he was a little bit bad, he was horrible. Out July 15, Dr. Death introduces viewers to Christopher Duntsch, a real-life Texas-based surgeon who in 2017 was sentenced to life in prison after maiming and even killing almost all of the nearly 40 patients he operated on between 2011 and 2013. Dr. Death, read about how reckless surgeon Robert Liston killed his patient and two bystanders. "Never ever f***ing argue with me and banter or what the f*** ever in front of anyone. "Between god, Einstein and the antichrist", Anyone close to me thinks that I likely am something between god, Einstein and the antichrist. Right? What storytelling tools did you discover from working in a podcast format that you didnt have before, or maybe didnt think about before? Its lucrative for the hospital. Basically someone listened to Dirty John who knew about the story of Christopher Duntsch emailed in and said, Hey, you should get a load of this guy. Because he had gotten a lot of local media attention, but I dont think he was getting huge national attention. Patrick Macmanus also explains why the show's supporting characters were such a gift. Theres a lot of attorneys not allowing things in this story it seems like. Had he explored his research and stayed in that lane and never gone to operate, we'd be talking about him in an entirely different fashion today. What can I find out about this guy? Their efforts to stop him, as documented both in the podcast and show, take a long time, as Duntsch moves between hospitals and continues injuring patients. Right? I know youve done this for a long time, but what are some of the things you have to be careful about in reporting a story like this? Jamie Dornan was originally attached to play Christopher in the beginning. Was that something that he knew? My wife laughs at me all the time about it. Yeah, hopefully even just asking that question today almost feels a little bit dated. Speaking only for myself, I could have listened to seven hours of the incredibly graphic stuff. And because while we, as patients were told, well, the patient comes first. You have reached your limit of free articles. Alec Baldwin and Christian Slater join the cast as two doctors who try to stop Duntsch from causing further harm. Thanks to the system, though, Duntsch was able to keep working and hurting people until two of his fellow doctors, Randall Kirby and Robert Henderson (played respectively by Christian Slater and Alec Baldwin), were able to expose him and put him behind bars. Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story starts streaming on Peacock Thursday, July 29. Right? I listened to this with some friends at one point, and there was a lot of cringing at the medical butchery descriptions. . The first season of Dr. Death, which launched in 2018 and ran for seven episodes, examined the life and horrific crimes of Christopher Duntsch. Over this period, Duntsch performed back surgeries that left his patients in a worse condition, paralyzed, or deceased. But the meta statement of "my gosh, a show can be shot by three women, who knew" we were 75 years past the place of thinking "can three men shoot a show all by themselves?" Even worse, some of the patients never got the chance to wake up. So I have to constantly remind myself here that no matter how well-intentioned or well-meaning any doctor or any hospital that I'm interacting with, ultimately they're selling me something. He is currently housed in the O.B. Patrick Macmanus also explains why the show's supporting characters were such a gift. After a fall in her kitchen, Martin experienced chronic back pain and sought out surgery to alleviate it. Prior to serving as Senior TV Editor at Collider, her work had been published by Vulture, Variety, The AV Club, The Hollywood Reporter, IGN, The Verge, and Thought Catalog. I didnt want listeners to grow tired of peoples pain. And so, that was one of my goals to start out with, is to just report the hell out of it. JACKSON: Well, actually, I think it's even one step scarier than that. He decided hed be a neurosurgeon and was not going to let anything, including lack of skill or training, stop him in his quest. Duntsch focused on his research for a while but was recruited from Memphis to join the Minimally Invasive Spine Institute in North Dallas in the summer of 2011. I expected some oohs and ahhs, but, for instance, the missing screw, when you get to the part that there was this screw where he had put it into the muscle. Dr. Death stars Joshua Jackson as Christopher Duntsch, with supporting performances from Alec Baldwin, Christian Slater, AnnaSophia Robb and Grace Gummer. Were you in the car listening to the podcast on the way to the grocery store and you said, 'Oh my God, I've got to make a limited series out of this?'. But more importantly, he explained how he got inside the head of a man who it would be all-too-easy to write off as pure evil. Dr. Death: Where Is Christopher Duntsch Today? - Grunge But neurosurgeons are big money makers. Dr. Christopher Duntsch had the hallmarks of an impressive neurosurgeon, at least in theory. I can tell you that, with the intention of allowing audiences to come to their own conclusions, my conclusion is that Christopher is an extraordinarily complex and tragic figure. But the actuality is, is that these hospitals will protect themselves. Duntschs career started off bright. PATRICK MACMANUS I didn't hear the podcast first. The patient Duntsch operated on continues to walk with a cane and lives with chronic pain. Its those two question combined the lurid, unstoppable search for an ultimate motive, and the more concrete question of how the medical system allowed this to happen and how we can fix it that make listening to Dr. Death feel like youre eating cake and taking your medicine at the same time. For example, I never knew before I started this that I had such strong feelings about sound effects. This meant Summers could still feel pain, but was unable to move from the neck down. Follow her on Twitter at @lizlet. Dr. ", "You, my child, are the only one between me and the other side. 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Christopher, known as Dr Death, was Jerry's friend and the surgeon who performed the botched operation on him in 2011 Credit: Dallas County Sheriff's office The four-part docuseries features old footage and new interviews to tell more of the story about the neurosurgeon who was sentenced to prison after maiming or killing more than 30 patients. Prior to his death earlier this year, Jerry discussed his relationship with Christopher in a new interview for Peacocks Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story. 'Dr. Death': AnnaSophia Robb on Playing ADA Michelle Shughart - Newsweek The charismatic neurosurgeon was actually a successful researcher before he starting killing people in the operating room. Death' Review: Joshua Jackson Is Terrific in Terrifying Peacock Series That's as Sharp as a Scalpel, 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' Characters Ranked by Likeability, 10 Sitcoms With Content That Hasn't Aged Well, 'Baby J' Doesn't Show Us the Real John Mulaney and That's a Good Thing. His first drug of choice would be cocaine.. Two patients died from his actions and many more suffered permanent injuries, including his best friend, who left Duntsch's operating room paralyzed. And even after he eventually lost that appeal, the train had already left the station. Im saying the system played a role in it, but it was clearly his fault. He was even part of a group that founded the biopharmaceutical company Discgenicswhich focuses on developing regenerative cell-based therapies to help with painand brought on two of his mentors in surgery as investors. The real Dr. Henderson and Dr. Kirby could never answer that question, to this day. But depositions from Duntschs peers who knew him around that time period, between 2006 and 2008, point to cracks in the facade. And its all because of one surgeon named Christopher Duntsch a.k.a. Because how can I do anything I want and cross every discipline boundary like its a playground and never ever lose. Dr. Death in surgery. I had never seen him like that. Yeah, and I listened to it twice, happily. Left: WFAA-TV, Right: D MagazineLeft: Christopher Duntsch in surgery, Right: Christopher Duntschs mugshot. Christopher Duntschs late friend and victim, Jerry Summers, claimed Dr. Death gave him his first hit of acid.. Dominic Burgess on Playing Real Life Jerry Summers in Peacock's Dr I didnt want to create a two-dimensional villain, and his dad, I think, wouldve provided the most humanizing voice in the story, but the attorney just wouldnt allow it. While the state of modern journalism can often seem pretty dire, investigative, serialized podcast series stand out as one of todays few bright spots, one of the last places you can still find people willing to pay for good reporting. Dr. Death in surgery. Right? One lucky person actually improved. According to D Magazine, Duntsch did so well in medical school that he was allowed to join the prestigiousAlpha Omega Medical Honor Society. The podcast is also becoming the go-to medium for in-depth profiles of fascinating sociopaths, allowing us to marvel at the sheer breadth of human behavior as we go about our mundane daily drive to work or do chores around the house. Jennifer Morrison, I've actually known for a very long time. But some of the most important testimony came from Kimberly Morgan, Duntschs former assistant and ex-girlfriend, who shared parts of a 2011 email from Duntsch that appeared to lay out his true aims: Unfortunately, you cannot understand that I am building an empire and I am so far outside the box that the Earth is small and the sun is bright. Death.'. Does that make sense? The Peacock limited series, based on the Wondery podcast, covers the true story of Dr. Christopher Duntsch (played by Joshua Jackson), whose surgical career ruined the lives of numerous people patients who trusted that he would help them get better.