When describing the reaction to Bret Easton Ellis's 1991 novel American Psycho, the word "controversial" seems hilariously inadequate. The backlash to this transgressive tale of a Wall Street stockbroker who moonlights as a sadistic serial killer was intense. So when the film adaptation hit theaters in 2000, it was anticipated with a great deal of trepidation and skepticism.

As it turns out, director Mary Harron brought the satirical elements of the book front and center in a way that not only recontextualized the source material for many people, it arguably improved upon it in many ways.

Two decades later, the character of Patrick Bateman maintains a stranglehold on pop culture and we wanted to investigate why.

Topics include: the arduous road to getting the film made and some truly shocking prior iterations that almost made it to the screen, Christian Bale's "method-adjacent" approach to his performance and the effect that had on his co-stars, why the themes of the story are maybe even more relevant now, the in-name-only sequel, Bateman's appearances in other media, whether or not audiences have spent 20 years asking the wrong question about the film's ending, and much more!

‌

Episode description

Case File 056: American Psycho

Episode description