christopher duntsch interview

Its weird because he seems like a normal guy through most of his early life, and then he turns into this really entertaining sociopath, kind of like the guy from Dirty John. I have three lawsuits. And so, I tried to include those details that would really establish how bad he was. According to Summers, he first met Duntsch in junior high school in Tennessee when they both played football together and remembered him being a "real smart" and "hard-working guy." As an undergraduate in college, Duntsch even lived with Summers and Summers' grandmother. Like, let the story speak for itself. What can I find out about this guy? Yeah, I mean, what strikes me about it so much is that, you can see that, and you can also see why we need systems that clearly weren't working in this case. The Peacock limited series Dr. Death is in many ways much more a horror story than a drama, but the villain at its center is all too real. Write to Mahita Gajanan at mahita.gajanan@time.com. But everyone around him, not wittingly or willingly, ended up sort of encouraging all of his worst attributes. From 2011 to 2013, dozens of patients in the Dallas area woke up after their surgeries with horrible pain, numbness and, paralysis. The Peacock limited series Dr. Death is in many ways much more a horror story than a drama, but the villain at . One, since the [Mary] Efurd case in the one that eventually goes on trial, I thought it was important to know what happened in that case, so thats one. Duntsch moved on fairly quickly, to the Dallas Medical Center, where officials allowed him to begin operating while they conducted his reference checkswhich ended in disaster. I can tell you that I do believe that he was a product of nature, nurture and the system that enabled him to be able to do what he did. 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. And so, there were times that I would say, Do we really need to have ? And they were open to it all. Ellis Unit in Huntsville and will be. And what did it mean to you to have an all female directing team? But I think, it is good. 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?" 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. While he did make it on to a couple of college teamsone in Mississippi and one in Coloradoformer teammates said he had trouble keeping up in practice but would plead with coaches to let him keep trying. And from that, it became apparent that the story is really about our healthcare system. Crucially, as is recounted in careful detail in the podcast, in part because of the voluntary exit, Baylor-Plano was not required to report Duntschs actions to the National Practitioner Data Bank, a resource medical professionals and hospital administrators use to track which doctors have been fired, suspended, had their licenses revoked or have had to make malpractice payments. One conversation in Peacocks first episode of Dr. Death sums up the confusion many felt at watching Duntsch work: It was like he knew what he was supposed to do and he did the exact opposite.. His resume included a combined MD/PhD program and neurosurgical residency at The University of Tennessee at Memphis College of Medicine and was bolstered by a prestigious spine surgery fellowship in the city, a research patent under his name and published academic papers. And so, as it goes along, theres sort of less and less about what he did to each person. "This defendant single-handedly. She is also a produced playwright, a host of podcasts, and a repository of "X-Files" trivia. 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. Dr. Death, a story Wonderys producers heard about through Dirty Johns tips email, feels perhaps less like a show on Oxygen, though its arguably more relevant. Before that, Naomi was a criminal justice reporter in Dallas, New Orleans and Baton Rouge. I will say I'm a hundred percent hypochondriac. Heres what to know about Duntsch, what he did and how he was eventually stopped. The value of the legal system, right, of tort reform in the state of Texas was placed above the safety and remuneration of the patients and victims. Its not just the story of Christopher Duntsch, its a story about the American healthcare system. I didnt really expect that one to create quite such a reaction. Duntsch's criminal defense attorney claims her client made honest mistakes while performing risky surgeries. Planes dont crash because one big thing goes wrong. Jodi Smith. Jennifer Morrison, I've actually known for a very long time. But I did have to let go and trust them. I think the systems were working. Kirby, along with Dr. Robert Henderson (played in the series by Alec Baldwin), a spine surgeon who had been called in to fix Duntschs mistakes, were among the physicians who reported and attempted to stop him. I am somebody who adores the genre of horror. See Kim's most controversial Met Gala looks after 'offensive' Marilyn gown, Inside Teen Mom Jenelle's ex Andrew's humble New York life away from Jace, Kourtney Kardashians thin frame drowns in baggy jeans as she rocks sultry red lips, Wheel of Fortune brings back contestant 'treated unfairly' in rare gesture, 2020 THE SUN, US, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE | PRIVACY | YOUR AD CHOICES | SITEMAP, Jerry Summers, who died earlier this year, claimed Christopher Duntsch gave him his 'first hit of acid', Christopher, known as Dr Death, was Jerry's friend and the surgeon who performed the botched operation on him in 2011, Jerry claimed he'd 'never taken a hit of acid' before doing so with Christopher, Along with a docuseries, Peacock also has a Dr Death scripted show, where Joshua Jackson plays the titular character, Dr Death - Trailer for the Peacock series based on the true story of Christopher Duntsch. Both the scripted Dr. Death series and the Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story docuseries are now streaming on Peacock. At first I thought it was simply my world and that it was too much for you. 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I think that it would do a disservice to the story to try to find the pretty pink bow to tie on the story, to let people know how this creature could possibly be. Our intent was to present the story as best we could, and then allow audiences to take away from it whatever they would like to, because I just don't believe that we can answer why someone like Christopher Duntsch is or why he did what he did. Ive been writing in print for a long time, so I really enjoyed the chance to do something different. Well, it was familiar content-wise because Im a medical reporter, so Ive never covered anything else. JACKSON: Well, yeah, it gives you a healthy skepticism. After a fall in her kitchen, Martin experienced chronic back pain and sought out surgery to alleviate it. You can take in more from a printed article. And because while we, as patients were told, well, the patient comes first. From the very start, before there were any writers and before I'd even written the pilot episode, I had said to the studio that if you are asking me to answer the question of why Christopher Duntsch is the way that he is, I will never give you that answer. Right? Yeah, hopefully even just asking that question today almost feels a little bit dated. Texas Neurosurgeon 'Dr. Beil is a journalist who has specialized in science and medical writing for 20 years, and lives in the Dallas area where much of Christopher Duntschs story takes place. I wanted to talk to his father, and his father indicated that he did want to, but his appellate attorney wouldnt allow that for reasons that I dont understand. Death' Before 33 Operations Went Wrong, The True Story Behind Hulu's 'Boston Strangler', The Best True Crime Documentaries to Stream Now, Get a First Look at Joshua Jackson, Christian Slater in 'Dr. RELATED: Joshua Jackson on Playing 'Dr. According to D Magazine, Duntsch did so well in medical school that he was allowed to join the prestigiousAlpha Omega Medical Honor Society. Its interesting, because when I heard at the premiere, people were reacting to things that I didnt anticipate them reacting to. Eventually, they indicted Duntsch on five counts of aggravated assault and one count of causing harm to an elderly person. But even inside it, there was some times where sequences would line up as chronological, but the timeline was a lot to keep your head around. So, ask the producers. Well, the whole email thats coming up in episode three Its hard to pick out because it just goes on and on. However, it wouldnt be long until Duntschs seemingly perfect career began to unravel. And the other part of it, is that the reason that it kind of starts out like that is you really need to know from the outset how bad a surgeon he was. And so, thats really what I zeroed in on, the whole systemic failure that allowed this to happen. And so, when youre writing, its like, Okay, well, what is this have to do with the tape thats coming up? Something in print, you dont have these really long quotes for people. Dr. Death in surgery. After several more months of botched surgeries, Duntsch finally lost his surgical privileges altogether in June 2013 after two physicians complained to the Texas Medical Board. Probably with any medical story, really, you want to be most careful with the patients themselves. Do you want to add anything? I would say that he and I both were cokeheads. I realized what he really had to offer. Prior to his death earlier this year, Jerry discussed his relationship with Christopher in a new interview for Peacocks Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story. Tackling some of the same stories that in years past might have gotten one sensational episode on Dateline NBC, the more expansive, more bingeable podcast format seems to allow them to become both more memorable and more consequential. What storytelling tools did you discover from working in a podcast format that you didnt have before, or maybe didnt think about before? He joined the publication in 2021 on the crime beat. And I didnt want to seem like I was exploiting them, or making it sensational by really going into the horrible details of what he did each time. Then check out the horrifying story of Simon Bramhall, a surgeon who admitted to burning his initials into patients livers. Naomi Martin. How much of a factor is a for-profit medical system in helping this to happen? or were you like, "No, we should push it further, we should make this really clear?". Those were way more telling than the emails, I thought, because if you just read through those you get kind of a look into his mind. Kane also recalled a cocaine- and LSD-fueled night of partying between her, her ex-boyfriend, and Duntsch where, after the end of their all-night party, she saw Duntsch put on his lab coat and go to work. Do you mind mentioning any of those? She received The Dallas Morning News Reporter of the Year award in 2016 and 2017. It was a conscious choice from the very beginning to not show the surgeries until the finale. While Baylor-Plano conducted an investigation of Duntsch and his cases, and found that he would need to be let go, Duntsch was not technically fired from the hospital. They dont want to go participate in any extraneous activities, and he was totally fine going to work.. Right? Duntsch declined a reporter's request for a jailhouse interview Tuesday. You have these compelling heroes in Henderson and Kirby that are unlike, in my opinion, unlike other quote-unquote "heroes" in the true crime space, because these are two who are taking down one of their own. 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. Here, Macmanus talks about how he first discovered the ghastly true story behind Dr. Death which stars Joshua Jackson and drops today on Peacock -- and whether he thinks Duntsch is truly crazy. Was this familiar territory for you? They couldve just said, Youre the print person, leave this to us. But I would err on the side of less is more. 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. Like, I could hear the people around me reacting. I can't think of a more enormous responsibility than trying to find an actor to play that role. In July, he performed an operation on a woman who lost a tremendous amount of blood and lost consciousness upon waking up after surgery. Because neurosurgeons, they bring in a lot of money for their institution. The former American neurosurgeon was convicted for gross malpractice of maiming . And the fact that the system failed doesnt absolve him of the responsibility of what he did, and I want to make that clear. I had seen Josh in When They See Us. In 2013, things came to a tragic head. Philip Mayfield, one of Christopher Duntschs patients, who was paralyzed after his surgery. And then on top of that, you have the systemic side of the medical system that ultimately failed in stopping him. And so, that was one of my goals to start out with, is to just report the hell out of it. Did you feel a need to go talk to Christopher Duntsch in prison? All three of them are fantastic each in their own right. He had a very small but vitally important role. JACKSON: Yeah. Beil is a journalist who has specialized in science and medical writing for 20 years, and lives in the Dallas area where much of Christopher Duntsch's story takes place. So, yeah, I think the fact that he was in a profession that brings in a lot of money for hospitals was certainly a factor. Duntsch, 44, is being held inthe Dallas County Jail on $600,000 bail on charges involving the death of one patient and the injuring of four others. To become a neurosurgeon, one typically has to complete over 1000 surgeries in residency, but somehow, reporter Laura Beil discovered that Duntsch only completed 100. But from the people that I talked to, it wasnt so much the money, it was more that neurosurgeons are really prestigious, and theyre like one of the top people Like, if you go back and listen to what [Duntschs college friend and football teammate] Chris Dozois says, and how [Duntsch] was not great at being a linebacker, but he wanted to be the best one. And its all because of one surgeon named Christopher Duntsch a.k.a. Well, thank you for your time. I think his upbringing fanned the flames of that sociopathy and that narcissism. At the same time, Duntsch was operating on another woman, and the staff in the room said they were unsure whether he was putting hardware in the right places and noticed he kept drilling and removing screws. That woman woke up in pain, unable to move. When we are alone, my love for you will let you do so because that is your nature. The son of a physical therapist and teacher, he was known even before pursuing his medical aspirations as a person who didnt give upeven when letting go would have been the right choice. Christophers baby mama Wendy Young described him and Jerry as the party boys, and Jerry described just how true that was. It was the status, because his friend Rand Page, said that he actually never intended to be a neurosurgeon, that he was gonna work at this [stem cell treatment] company and make his fortune there. Right? "In my opinion, we had a serial killer in our medical community," Dr. Randall Kirby says of Christopher Duntsch in "Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story." In "Dr. Death: The Undoctored Story," a new docuseries streaming now on Peacock, the victims who were . Duntsch agreed by voicemail to an interview for this story on Wednesday, but did not return subsequent calls for comment. Death' Gets Life in Prison for Botched Surgery, How Other Doctors Tried and Failed to Stop Texas' 'Dr. The value of the institutions was placed above the value of the patients. Over the course of two years, Christopher Duntsch operated on 38 patients in the Dallas area. However, things soon went south. Duntsch was fired after he performed a surgery and immediately left for Las Vegas, leaving no one to look after his patient. He's doing it on purpose. So the Canadian system is very different than the American system. How much did you worry about putting too much of that in there and it being too gory, or too graphic? The day that Brown suffered her stroke, Duntsch operated again. To establish that Duntschs disastrous work had been a part of a longtime pattern, prosecutors brought several of his former patients on the stand to testify about their experiences. He toldLocal Memphisin 2014 that he woke up from the surgery paralyzed, which ultimately left him a quadriplegic. Christopher Duntsch was sentenced to life in prison in February 2017 for his heinous acts. So, theyre not as bad. So we had all of the tools at our disposal. Right? Death', How We Can Learn to Live with COVID-19 After Vaccinations. We've told lots and lots and lots of our stories. 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?'. Chief among them is the mystery of whether Duntsch was homicidal or simply criminally inept. So, while I wish that the administrations acted sooner, at the end of the day, and this is something that I've said for quite a bit now, Christopher Duntsch deserves to be in jail for the rest of his life, because how he acted was completely inhuman and any human that had that ability to feel would have stopped after the first or second surgeries. That was a big focus of Collider's one-on-one interview with Joshua Jackson, who spoke openly about the differences between the American and Canadian health care systems and why it's an important step for shows like Dr. Death to include an all-female directing team (Maggie Kiley, Jennifer Morrison, and So Yong Kim directed the eight episodes). In terms of the production, were you shooting at all chronologically or was itwere you kind of bouncing between time periods? Right? And so, in the end, I did have to trust them, and I do. You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookies Settings. Was a Dallas Surgeon Stoned When He Maimed His Patients?Surgery is scary enough, but when you hear what happened to some people it may seem downright terrifying. 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. Coupled with the slow pace of the investigation the Texas Medical Board conducted, Duntsch was basically allowed to wreak havoc wherever he went until he was brought to a final stop. But I started listening to a whole lot more podcasts after. Death' Review: Joshua Jackson Is Terrific in Terrifying Peacock Series That's as Sharp as a Scalpel. So really for us, we're in a place where we're actually conscious of it, but the industry still has time to go. 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. Yeah, and I listened to it twice, happily. These are doctors who didn't sign up to become heroes, right? So the outcomes are totally evil, and it is unconscionable that this man was allowed to continue to create this much chaos and pain in people's lives. RELATED: 'When They See Us': Joshua Jackson, Blair Underwood & Christopher Jackson on the Netflix Limited Series. The first season of Dr. Death, which launched in 2018 and ran for seven episodes, examined the life and horrific crimes of Christopher Duntsch. I do believe he was born as a narcissistic sociopath. Christopher Duntsch was just a regular guy who became Dr. Death after he decided to be a neurosurgeon. Of course, podcast producers are subject to the same profit motive that helped facilitate a guy like Duntsch, but to their credit, Wonderys producers seem to have realized that a story like Dr. Deaths needed to be built on a foundation of solid reporting. The series, a lightly fictionalized version of the podcast, stars Joshua Jackson as the slick and overconfident Duntsch. So, in this case, it was just a lot that went wrong, starting with the fact of Duntsch himself. Peacock released the series to complement its scripted portrayal of the story, Dr. Death, which released a couple of weeks ago and stars Joshua Jackson as the titular character. MACMANUS: You know, it's interesting that you asked that question because it was something that we talked about quite a bit, even before we had the writers' room I'm talking three years ago, I think I got the podcast exactly three years ago next week and my answer was that I genuinely don't believe we will ever be able to answer who Christopher Duntsch was and why he was, and it was not my intention, nor was it our writer's intention, once we got to the writers' room, to answer that question in full. 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. 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. Christopher Duntschs late friend and victim, Jerry Summers, claimed Dr. Death gave him his first hit of acid.. I could only go as far back as his Memphis days, so I did go back to Memphis, and I did talk to quite a few people who knew him in high school. Going back to neurosurgeons being really lucrative for hospitals. This meant Summers could still feel pain, but was unable to move from the neck down.

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