BETHLEHEM, Pa. - The story of serial killer Charles Cullen, who admitted to dozens of victims but is believed to have killed hundreds of patients while working as a nurse in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, debuted on Wednesday, Oct. 26, on Netflix.
"The Good Nurse" focuses on Cullen’s 16 years of murder, including at hospitals throughout the Lehigh Valley.
- A movie about serial killer nurse Charles Cullen debuts on Netflix
- Cullen is considered one of the most prolific serial killers in American history
- He admitted to killing dozens of hospital patients, including at hospitals throughout the Lehigh Valley
Cullen worked at St. Luke's Hospital in Fountain Hill, at Easton Hospital and in the burn unit at Lehigh Valley Hospital, Cedar Crest. He also worked at Liberty Nursing Home and at Sacred Heart Hospital, both in Allentown, and at Warren Hospital in Phillipsburg.
Cullen ultimately admitted to killing 29 people in the span of 1988 to 2003. While transferring from hospital to hospital, authorities say was able to cover up his deadly poisoning of patients using intravenous fluids.
Cullen confessed to investigators that he committed the crimes to ease the pain and suffering of his victims and described his actions as mercy killings. He was sentenced to consecutive life sentences in 2006.
The Netflix movie draws significantly from Charles Graeber’s 2013 book, "The Good Nurse: A True Story of Medicine, Madness and Murder," but also raises larger questions about the country's health care system.
It begins outside the home of Amy Loughren, the nurse who uncovered Cullen's crimes.
"The Good Nurse" stars Oscar winners Jessica Chastain as Loughren and Eddie Redmayne as Cullen. It has a run time of two hours and 3 minutes and is described by the streaming service as a "chilling crime thriller based on true events."
Information from the Associated Press was used in this story.
