Wade Wilson Documentary: Handsome Devil and Worst Ex Ever

Two documentaries have been made about Wade Wilson, the Florida man dubbed the “Deadpool Killer” for sharing a name with the Marvel character: the three-part Paramount+ series Handsome Devil: Charming Killer, which premiered January 20, 2026, and the Season 2 premiere of Netflix’s Worst Ex Ever, titled “Dating the Deadpool Killer,” released May 6, 2026. Both cover Wilson’s October 2019 murders of two women in Cape Coral, his 2024 trial and death sentence, and the online following he drew during the proceedings.

Handsome Devil: Charming Killer on Paramount+

The Paramount+ docuseries runs three episodes, titled “The Manhunt,” “Wade’s Wives,” and “The Death Penalty.”¹ It was directed by Brian Ross and Rhonda Schwartz and produced by Law & Crime Productions and See It Now Studios.²

The series works from police bodycam footage and first-hand interviews with people close to the case, including Wilson’s biological father, Steven Testasecca, and his then-girlfriend, Mila Montanez.² Testasecca is central to the story: it was his call to police after Wilson told him “I’m a killer” that led to the arrest.³

Critical reception was mixed. A Decider review rated the series “Skip It,” criticizing it for lacking artfulness and for treating the victims as “secondary characters” in favor of focusing on Wilson and his admirers.⁴

Worst Ex Ever Season 2: “Dating the Deadpool Killer” on Netflix

Netflix’s true-crime anthology Worst Ex Ever opened its second season with an episode devoted entirely to Wilson. It centers on Kelly Matthews, a former girlfriend from West Palm Beach who initially described Wilson as “the perfect man” before his behavior turned violent.⁵

In February 2019, Matthews reported to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office that Wilson had beaten and strangled her. Authorities found no probable cause to arrest him at the time.⁵ The episode traces that escalating pattern through the Cape Coral murders eight months later and Wilson’s eventual capture, using animated reenactments, bodycam footage, and police interviews.⁶

The Murders Both Films Cover

On the morning of October 7, 2019, Wilson strangled 35-year-old Kristine Melton in her sleep at her Cape Coral home and stole her black Nissan Versa.⁷ Hours later he encountered 43-year-old Diane Ruiz, lured her into the car by asking for directions to a school, beat and strangled her, pushed her out of the vehicle, and ran her over repeatedly while she was still alive.³

Melton’s body was found the same day. Ruiz was not discovered until October 10, when police followed vultures circling a field behind a Sam’s Club in Cape Coral.⁸ Between the killings, Wilson drove to Fort Myers in Melton’s stolen car and attacked Mila Montanez at her workplace when she refused to get into the unfamiliar vehicle.³

Wilson was arrested October 8 at an unoccupied residence he had broken into, after his father alerted police.³ He gave a taped confession to police, and a friend, Joshua Lukitsch, testified at trial that Wilson had phoned him on the day of the murders and said, “I’ve killed people,” adding that he needed to leave town.⁸

Trial and Death Sentence

Wilson’s trial took place in June 2024 in Lee County Circuit Court, with Judge Nicholas Thompson presiding. Assistant State Attorney Olivia Ferrell led the prosecution; Lee Hollander and Kevin Shirley represented Wilson.⁹ On June 12, 2024, the jury convicted him on all six counts: two counts of first-degree murder, grand theft of a motor vehicle, battery, burglary of a dwelling, and first-degree petit theft.¹⁰

In the penalty phase, the jury found the murders “heinous, atrocious and cruel.”¹¹ On June 25, 2024, jurors recommended death for both murders, voting 9–3 for the killing of Melton and 10–2 for the killing of Ruiz.¹⁰ Judge Thompson agreed with the recommendation and imposed two death sentences on August 27, 2024.¹² Wilson is held on death row at Union Correctional Institution in Raiford, Florida.

The Appeal Still Unfolding After the Documentaries

Neither film can close the book on Wilson’s case, because his appeal is active. Florida law makes death sentence review automatic before the Florida Supreme Court whether or not the defendant wants to pursue it.¹³ Wilson’s case was docketed as SC2024-1345 in September 2024.¹⁴

The central issue is Florida’s 2023 death penalty law, which lowered the jury threshold for a death recommendation from unanimous to 8–4. Wilson committed the murders in 2019 but was tried after the change, so his non-unanimous 9–3 and 10–2 votes were permitted. His appellate attorney, Michael Ufferman, argues that applying the new standard retroactively violates the U.S. and Florida constitutions and points to a Florida statute that “expressly prohibits retroactive application of any statute ‘dealing in any way with a crime or its punishment.'”¹¹

At a February 5, 2026 hearing, the Florida Supreme Court upheld the lower court’s ruling. Ufferman said he chose not to re-litigate precedent the court had already rejected in similar cases, preserving the issue instead for a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court.¹¹ Florida capital appeals typically last 10 to 15 years when direct appeals and post-conviction proceedings are combined.¹⁵

The Online Following That Shapes Both Films

A recurring subject in both documentaries is the fan base Wilson drew during his televised trial. Hundreds of women publicly expressed admiration on social media, sending love letters, explicit photographs, and joining video calls from prison. One admirer, Alexis Williams, called herself his girlfriend. Another was recorded telling Wilson, “You’re freaky and you love to choke a b—h out. It’s not your fault you’re strong.” Some supporters said they did not care that he had killed two women.¹⁶

The attention was fueled partly by Wilson’s appearance and partly by the coincidence of his name with Marvel’s Deadpool. That phenomenon is a driving thread of the Paramount+ series, which the Decider review argued sometimes overtakes the story of the victims themselves.⁴

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Paramount Press Express. Handsome Devil: Charming Killer
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Variety. Paramount True Crime Series Handsome Devil Deadpool Killer
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E! Online. Inside the Gruesome Deadpool Killer Case That Led to a Death Sentence for Wade Wilson
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Decider. Handsome Devil Charming Killer Paramount Plus Review
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News-Press. Netflix Wade Wilson Worst Ex Ever How When Watch New Season
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Netflix. Worst Ex Ever Season 2 Release Date News
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State Attorney’s Office, 20th Judicial Circuit. Jury Recommends the Death Penalty for Killer Wade Wilson
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Court TV. FL v. Wade Wilson Strangled Women Murder Trial
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News-Press. Attorneys Ask Court to Delay Penalty Phase in Wade Wilson Trial
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News-Press. Wade Wilson Florida Killer Death Row Timeline Murders Trial Sentence
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Court TV. Wade Wilson’s Attorney Promises to Take Appeal to US Supreme Court
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News-Press. Wade Wilson Death Sentence Florida Killer
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The Florida Bar. Death Sentence Reviews Are Automatic Even if It’s Against the Client’s Wishes
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Florida Courts. Wade Steven Wilson v. State of Florida, SC2024-1345
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Florida Attorney General’s Office. Victims Rights in the Capital Appeals Process
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New York Post. Fans of Deadpool Killer Wade Wilson Begged Him to Impregnate Them in Prison Video Calls