The brand-new FX drama television series "The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story," which is based on the life of the legendary Italian fashion designer, was recently released. Fortunately for the showrunners, the series was received well, and the results are visible through the ratings that it received. However, the first two episodes have raised fact-checking questions, especially on the possibility of Versace having contracted HIV.
As reported by Vanity Fair, author of the book titled "Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace, and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History," Maureen Orth, stated that the deceased fashion designer was tested positive for HIV. Orth's statements come from a detective from Miami Beach, Paul Scrimshaw, who was the lead detective in the case of Versace's death. Scrimshaw confirmed to Orth that the autopsy reports showed that Versace indeed had the auto-immune virus.
In addition to that, detective Scrimshaw stated previously that Andrew Cunanan, the man responsible for Versace's death, was motivated to commit murder since Versace may have passed the virus onto him. However, Cunanan tested positive for AIDS, and not HIV.
It is notable to mention that Versace's family have been claiming all these years that the fashion designer never had the disease -- which puts the showrunners' motives behind tackling the sensitive subject into question.
The relatives of Versace have spoken out about the issue and expressed their disappointments about the depiction of their deceased loved one. They have affirmed that Orth's accounts are an attempt to "sensationalize" the story of Gianni, and have even asserted that it would have been illegal for Scrimshaw to have seen the test autopsy results in the first place. If this were true, then it makes Orth's version of the story rather questionable.
"The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story" airs on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. EST on FX.
