‘DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story’: Why the Netflix Series Advertised the Killer With Yellow Eyes
Netflix dives deep into another infamous serial killer that secretly wreaked havoc in America. DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story tells the story of Jeffrey Dahmer (Evan Peters) from his childhood, out-of-the-ordinary interests, and rise to become a prolific killer and cannibal. But an aspect of the series’s trailers were the eerie yellow eyes of Jeffrey Dahmer. The Netflix series reveals the twisted reason why he wore contacts.
[WARNING: This article contains mild spoilers for DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.]
Jeffrey Dahmer was different from a young age
The Netflix series takes audiences on the twisted and gory journey of a killer that went under the radar for years. From a young age, Dahmer knew he was different and did not fit the same interests as other children. Dealing with his parent’s fights and soon-to-be divorce, Dahmer found a hobby in taxidermy, thanks to his father. But his father unknowingly set him up with the tools to become a killer.
Between 1978 and 1991, Dahmer had given in to his impulses and began killing. He targeted a local gay bar, with all his victims being men. While the public is well aware of his Modus Operandi, his quirks, and cannibal tendencies, there is one aspect about Dahmer viewers likely did not know.
In the official Netflix posters and trailers for DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, fans see Dahmer, portrayed by Peters, having bright yellow eyes. Viewers might believe it is an advertising trick to make Dahmer appear like a monster. Still, in reality, Dahmer’s interest in certain pop culture movies had him idolizing a particular look.
Jeffrey Dahmer wore contacts to make his eyes appear yellow like the Emperor’s in ‘Star Wars’
It is not unheard of for pop culture movies and entertainment to inspire the masses. But viewers would have never guessed why Dahmer wore contacts to make his eyes appear yellow. DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story reveals why.
In the first episode, Dahmer brings back a new and his last victim to his apartment. He threatens and makes him sit on his bed to watch one of his favorite movies. The movie in question? The Exorcist III. While his victim cowers in fear and looks for a way to ease the killer, Dahmer fast forwards to his favorite scene. In the movie, Father Morning (Nicol Williamson) tries to exorcise the demon from The Gemini Killer (Brad Dourif). While in the process, the scene does a dramatic close-up of the killer’s bright yellow eyes before Father Morning’s head explodes.
It is one of the reasons DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story gives for Dahmer’s fascination with yellow eyes. In the second episode, when Dahmer incapacitates Konerak in his apartment, the victim wakes up in Dahmer’s lap. To everyone’s surprise, Dahmer is wearing yellow contacts.
He explains that they are like the Emperor’s (Ian McDiarmid) in Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi. Dahmer tells Konerak that he found them in a pawn shop. It is no surprise that Dahmer started to idolize killers and villains from movies.
Viewers found the killer’s yellow eyes to be frightening
The Netflix series has reanimated interest in Jeffrey Dahmer’s heinous crimes and the reasoning for using contacts to have yellow eyes. On Reddit, a viewer explained the detail about the contacts served a frightening purpose.
“The scene on the Netflix series were he wears the yellow contact lenses was very eerie. It comes in a close up shot of Evan Peters from a victims perspective where you can clearly see the yellow lenses in his eyes and it makes him look absolutely mythic, like some kind of ogre, werewolf, demon, or Wendigo wearing a human face,” said the viewer.
But in DAHMER — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, he explained the yellow eyes give him a sense of power. Another viewer on Reddit explains, “What makes it just as crazy to me is that he said he felt it gave him more power and control over his victims, because the Emperor controlled people too.”
But a deep dive into pop culture will have viewers realize that yellow eyes have been a moniker for villains for years. From Azazel in Supernatural to the Evil Queen in Sleeping Beauty, yellow eyes are evil to the core.
