Spoilers for Netflix’s Painkiller are ahead. You can stream the series that just premiered on the 2023 TV schedule with a Netflix subscription.
The OxyContin crisis and opioid epidemic is was not started by one person and it's not a singular issue, and in Painkiller that is made very clear. There are flashbacks that show the beginnings of Purdue Pharma and its founder Arthur Sackler, played by Clark Gregg. However, the greater toxic relationship between the drugs and marketing is shown through this character appearing as a ghost-like spirit in the primary antagonist’s, Matthew Broderick’s Richard Sackler, imagination as he creates and sells the drug. It’s a fascinating creative decision, and the producers told CinemaBlend all about why they made it, and how it helps illuminate just how long these problems have existed.
