A crazy and vicious neurosurgeon is the focus of Peacock’s new medical drama series, Dr. Death, which also features Alec Baldwin and Christian Slater. Due to COVID-19-related production delays, Jamie Dornan, who had been cast in the lead role, had to depart the show. Let’s find out Who Is Dr. Death Based On?
Many are curious if the events depicted in the series, directed by Maggie Kiley and co-executive produced by Patrick Macmanus, are based on a true story, as it follows the “young, charismatic, and ostensibly brilliant” Dr. Christopher Duntsch, a successful doctor with a flourishing career in Dallas, Texas.
Dr. Duntsch presented himself to the public as a bright and talented physician, but his patients were leaving his practice with horrific injuries and even dying after routine spine procedures.
Doctors Robert Henderson (Baldwin) of the neurosurgery department and Randall Kirby (Slater) of the vascular surgery department were the first to detect anything was amiss and bring Dr. Duntsch’s wrongdoings to light.
The official synopsis for the episode states, “Dr. Death investigates the sick mind of Dr. Duntsch and the shortcomings of the system created to safeguard society’s most vulnerable citizens.” Let’s find out Who Is Dr. Death Based On?
Who Is Dr. Death Based On?
Dr. Death is based on the true case of Texas surgeon Christopher Duntsch, who was given a life sentence in 2017 for the horrific injuries he inflicted on 35 of his 37 patients between 2011 and 2013.
According to TIME, 33 of the 37 individuals suffered some sort of injury as a result. Some of his victims awoke following operations crippled and/or in constant pain from damaged nerves.
Two patients died at Duntsch’s hands; one from massive blood loss during surgery and the other from a stroke brought on by a severed spinal artery. A boyhood friend of Duntsch’s needed spinal surgery, and the doctor accidentally severed an artery, leaving his patient a quadriplegic.
Who Is Christopher Duntsch?
Former American neurosurgeon Christopher Daniel Duntsch (born April 3, 1971) is known by his monikers “Dr. D” and “Dr. Death” due to his involvement in the spine injuries and deaths of two patients while he was employed at hospitals in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Prior to having his license suspended by the Texas Medical Board, Duntsch was accused of harming 33 of 38 patients in under two years.
He was found guilty of mutilating one of his patients and given a life sentence in 2017.
Christopher Duntsch was raised in Memphis, Tennessee despite having been born in Montana. His mom, Susan, was an educator, and his dad, Donald, was a physical therapist and Christian missionary. He attended and excelled in football at Evangelical Christian School, located in the Memphis suburb of Cordova.
Duntsch played collegiate football at Millsaps College in Division III before transferring to Colorado State University in Division I. Duntsch’s former teammates have claimed that despite his dedication to training, he simply isn’t talented enough to play professionally.
Duntsch went back to his hometown to continue his education at Memphis State (now the University of Memphis).
Where Is Real Dr. Death Now?
Christopher received a life sentence in jail in February 2017. A grand jury charged him with five counts of aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon and one count of hurting an elderly patient because “his outcomes were so terrible, so beyond the established level of care,” as reported by D Magazine. The “deadly weapons” were his own hands and the surgical instruments he used.
Mary afterward stated to the press, “If I start sobbing, I feel like the floodgates are going to open. The tears are coming out of me. I’ll think back on how challenging those first several months were.
Source: Heavy
There was a lot of rage in me due to the dramatic shifts in my circumstances. I used to be fairly self-reliant, but now I rely on other people for pretty much everything (transportation, food, etc.).”
According to Bustle, Christopher is serving time at the O.B. Ellis Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in Huntsville, and he won’t be eligible for release until he’s 74 years old in 2045.
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