Elijah Wood found serial killer movie No Man of God ‘liberating’

Elijah Wood found making a movie about serial killer Ted Bundy “liberating” and “fun” despite its dark subject matter.

The Lord of the Rings actor produces and stars in No Man of God, director Amber Sealey’s new unorthodox take on Bundy, who confessed to 30 homicides, committed in seven states between 1974 and 1978.

Wood plays FBI agent Bill Hagmaier in the new movie, opposite Luke Kirby’s Bundy, with the pair filming a series of tense conversational scenes depicting how the law enforcement officer got the killer to open up about his crimes while on death row.

Describing his experience making the film, the Green Street star told Variety: “It was liberating to get into something and stay in it.

“It does feel exploratory and you’re sort of finding it and feeling it. And then there’s the mechanics of these scenes where these two men are kind of performing for each other.

“There’s so much subtext. Playing with all these elements was so much fun. We were often surprised by the joyfulness of the process despite the darkness of the material.”

Bundy was previously depicted onscreen by Zac Efron as recently as 2019, and Wood also has a theory about why the serial killer still fascinates filmmakers more than 30 years after his execution.

“Bundy, more than any other mass murderer, serial killer or disturbed individual, managed to live a relatively successful double life,” he said. “He was relatively attractive and he didn’t fit the typical profile that many of these people do where they are not successful members of society.

“They are shut-ins or hermits. He was this confident individual, who was involved in local politics, studied law and was outwardly gregarious with a big personality. For many of us, it’s easy to separate ourselves from the monsters because we can’t relate to them. But we’re more fascinated by the killer who is seemingly more like us.”

No Man of God is due to hit cinemas in August.