4 reasons to watch American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace

 

It was one of the most talked about series of last year - and now the follow up to Ryan Murphy's American Crime Story: The People v. OJ is here.

The true crime anthology has returned to the small screen with American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace.  The nine-episode second season is based on the novel Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History by Maureen Orth. And, more than a month after it began in North America, the series kicked off this week on the BBC Two. This time, the focus is on the 1997 murder of fashion designer Gianni Versace (Édgar Ramírez) at the hands of serial killer Andrew Cunanan (Darren Criss). The all-star cast is rounded out with Penélope Cruz playing the fiercely protective Donatella Versace and Ricky Marin playing Gianni's partner, Antonio D'Amico. So, as the series continues, here are four reasons to watch  American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace. 

Darren Criss

While the show may be about Gianni Versace in name, the bulk of the season ends up following Criss' Andrew Cunanan, focusing on everything from early life to his previous murderers - including how he managed to dodge the authorities for months. And the Glee star definitely delivers. In a performance that is equal parts American Psycho and American Horror Story, the 31-year-old manages to show how Cunanan faked his way through life, spinning some fairly impressive lies about his past, while still hinting at the loneliness underneath the facade.

The fashion

It wouldn't be a show about Versace without at least some out-of-this world fashion. Among them? Some of the pieces from his final fashion show. The family reportedly did not lend the show any of the vintage pieces during the filming process, branding the series a "work of fiction". But the costume department managed to re-create eight looks from Atelier Versace's fall 1997 show in Paris - each more beautiful than the last.  

The (off the show) drama

Before the series even began in North America, the Assassination of Gianni Versace was already found itself caught up in controversy. The Versace family claimed that the show is "a work of fiction", and the book that it is based on "is full of gossip and speculation". But FX, the channel airing the programme, insisted that they would "stand by the meticulous reporting of Ms. Orth.”

It leaves you with more questions than answers

We get the 'what happened' fairly early on in the series (the assassination of Versace on the steps of his Miami mansion), but a huge part of American Crime Story's second season is also all about the 'why'. The show bounces through different years on the timeline, chronicling everything from the aftermath of Versace's death to the lives of each of Cunanan's other victims. And, at least halfway through the season, viewers are left with more questions than they had when they began - and not quite enough answers.