Hollywood actors and uprising stars have been the targets of many serial killers. Various (in)famous murders happened in Hollywood, and naturally, they created a stir in the media and amongst fans.
Some of these murder cases have further inspired some cult Hollywood movies. One of the most noted films in this regard, of course, is Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. In this 2019 movie, Margot Robbie played the role of Sharon Tate.
Sharon Tate, the actress of the Valley of the Dolls and wife of celebrated filmmaker Roman Polanski, was pregnant when a cult group known as the Manson Family killed her at her California home. This cult group was formed by Charles Manson, one of the most notorious serial killers in America.
Like the murder of Sharon Tate, there are many homicides of Hollywood actors that may sound stranger than fiction. In most cases, the murderers were arrested and punished for their deeds. However, some of the murderers could not be caught.
Do you want to know about more murder incidents that shook Hollywood? Read the thrilling accounts of crime.
(In)Famous Murders To Shock Hollywood
Hollywood and all the movie buffs were in shock when Rebecca Schaeffer lost her life to a stalker and murderer, Robert John Bardo. She was just 21 when the incident happened. Like the previously mentioned Sharon Tate murder case and the homicide of Rebecca Schaeffer, many famous murders have taken place in the illustrious history of Hollywood.
Here, I have curated the murder incidents that I find the most shocking.
1. Christina Grimmie
The murder of Christina Grimmie is still very much alive in our memory. She was greeting her friends at her Orlando concert, and she was signing autographs for her friends. At that time, Kevin James Loibl shot her dead from point-blank range. Loibl killed himself immediately after murdering Christina Grimmie.
Christina Grimmie was only 22 when she lost her life in 2016. In the next year, the family members of Christina Grimmie started an NGO called the Christina Grimmie Foundation. An investigation episode of Discovery’s Death by Fame shows Marcus Grimmie, the brother of Christina Grimmie, saying,
“I want to make people feel a little bit of comfort in this hard time,” Marcus says in the episode about the foundation. “To give them a little bit of help saying, ‘Hey, this is going to be really hard, but you can get through this.”
2. Natalie Wood
Along with Marilyn Monroe, Natalie Wood was another actress whose death remained in the veil of mystery. She had films like West Side Story and Miracle on 34th Street to her credit.
Natalie lost her life in an accidental drowning on 28th November 1981. Her dead body was found lying one mile away from the boat where she took the trip.
Who Killed Natalie Wood?
After thirty years of Natalie Wood’s death, the case was reopened in 2011. In 2013, when the re-opened case was in its second year, the report suggested “accidental drowning” and “drowning because of undetermined reasons” as the cause of her death. However, a new coroner’s report showed evidence of assaults that happened to Natalie before her death.
There were no charges filed against these findings. However, Natalie Wood, the biography of the actress, written by Suzanne Finstad, says, “Natalie Wood’s Drowning Was Not an Accident.”
“I also discovered that Natalie Wood’s drowning was not an accident. Homicide detectives in the L.A. Sheriff’s Department keep what they call a “murder book,” the official record of a homicide investigation. I was given access to Natalie Wood’s murder book. There I found the buried clues to what really happened on the last weekend of her life. As the evidence slowly, painstakingly mounted, it became disturbingly clear to me that not only was Natalie’s death not an accident, but the ensuing investigation was almost nonexistent.”
3. Elizabeth Short
The homicide of Elizabeth Short is one of the famous murders that remains a cold case to date. The criminal behind her murder was never found.
Known as The Black Dahlia for her penchant for sheer black clothes, Elizabeth tried to build a fortune in Hollywood after World War II.
Unfortunately, her corpse was found in a vacant parking lot in Leimert Park, LA. Her dead body was in a very bad shape and was almost in an unrecognizable condition. The woman who first discovered her corpse thought it to be a mannequin that had been broken into halves.
There were stabbing marks on her face, and the wounds were from ear to ear. The murderer also took out the internal organs from her body. In addition, the flesh was cut away from her breasts and thighs. The body was entirely devoid of blood.
Who Killed Elizabeth Short?
The murderer of Elizabeth Short never got caught. However, during investigations, the police and media thought her sexual deviance to be the reason behind her unfortunate murder. In this context, a police report said,
“This victim knew at least fifty men at the time of her death and at least twenty-five men had been seen with her in the sixty days preceding her death… She was known as a teaser of men.”
There were even claims of Short being a prostitute. Some speculations were even about Short being a lesbian who loved teasing guys.
4. Adrienne Shelly
The murder of Adrienne Shelly is one of the most famous murders to happen in Hollywood in the recent past. She began her journey in Hollywood as an actress. However, she got more praise for her role as a writer and director. Her film, Waitress was even a selection in the Sundance Film Festival in 2007.
However, her film had a posthumous release, and she was found hanging from the shower rod of the bathroom of her office apartment in Manhattan. She was found tied to the rod with a sheet.
Who Killed Adrienne Shelly?
The police primarily declared the death of Adrienne Shelly as a suicide. However, her husband, Andy Ostroy, did not agree with the idea and claimed that Shelly could never commit suicide, leaving her two-year-old daughter motherless. The police found dusty footprints, and the intricate pattern of the knot in the bedsheet further raised suspicions. There were also marks on her cheeks and her right eye.
The investigation went on, and finally, a construction worker, Diego Pilco, was found behind the robbery and murder of Adrienne Shelly. The construction worker was convicted and punished for the crime of first-degree manslaughter.
Today, Adrienne Shelly’s husband runs the Adrienne Shelly Foundation. It supports women filmmakers.
5. Nicole Brown
Nicole Brown Simpson was found dead with Ronald Goldman outside the former’s condominium in Brentwood on 12th June 1994. The murderer slashed their throats in order to bleed them to death.
Nicole was the ex-wife of football star O.J. Simpson, and he was the prime suspect of the macabre deeds.
Who Killed Nicole Brown?
The Los Angeles Police Department chased down O.J. Simpson. They caught Simpson on the Los Angeles highway while riding his white Bronco car. However, he did not fit into the gloves suspected to be worn by the killer of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman.
As a result, in 1995, in one of the most sensational trials of the century, O.J. Simpson was declared not guilty. However, the family members of Brown and Goldman further opened a civil suit, and in that case, he was found liable for the murder.
Further, 30 years after the murder of Nicole Brown, her sisters have opened up in
The Life & Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson. This new lifetime documentary has Dominique, Denise, and Tanya Brown speaking about their sister, the woman they knew. This docuseries will air on 1st June 2024.
6. Selena Quintanilla-Pérez
Selena Quintanilla-Pérez was known as the Queen of Tejano music. She was a Grammy winner, and she was also successful as a fashion designer.
However, Selena was killed by Yolanda Saldívar in 1995. She was just 23 at the time.
Who Killed Selena Quintanilla-Pérez?
Yolanda Saldívar was a fan and friend of Selena. Saldivar, an older woman, used to manage the singer’s fan club. She was almost like an assistant to Selena. However, one day, the family members of Selena found Saldivar stealing.
Being fired from her job, Saldivar became vengeful, and she killed Selena with a gun.
In an interview with ABC’s 20/20, Yolanda Saldívar said that she did not purposely kill Selena. She said,
“They made me out to be a monster, and I just want to say, I did not kill Selena. It was an accident, and my conscience is clear.”
She even tried to present the act of murder as an act of self-defense as she stated, “I didn’t feel safe. It was my own self-defense that if anything came my way, I was going to protect myself. I was fearful.”
However, Saldivar was convicted for the murder of Selena Quintanilla-Pérez in 1995. She got a life sentence, and she is up for parole in March 2025. Meanwhile, the “Selena and Yolanda: The Secrets Between Them” docuseries projects various aspects of the murder. In this docuseries, Saldivar further tried to prove her innocence.
7. Dominique Dunne
John Thomas Sweeney, the abusive ex-boyfriend of Dominique Dunne, killed her. The Poltergeist star broke up with her boyfriend, and a few weeks later, her boyfriend visited her house. They were engaged in a fight, and Sweeny killed Dominique at that time.
Thomas Sweeney was convicted and he got an imprisonment of six years. However, he was released after three years.
Was Marilyn Monroe’s Death One Of The Famous Murders In Hollywood?
You cannot overlook the speculations over Marilyn Monroe’s death when you talk about the famous murders in Hollywood. It has been more than sixty years since her death, and we are still unsure whether it was a suicide, a conspiracy, or, more blatantly, a murder.
With speculations about Monroe’s death growing stronger, the office of the Los Angeles County District Attorney ordered a further investigation in 1982, which was twenty years after the actress’s death.
People who did not believe her death to be a suicide or a usual drug overdose case questioned why the barbiturate residue was not found in her stomach. However, the prosecutor said residue was not found in her body as barbiturate got dispersed into her liver and body with time.
The 1982 probe continued for three months before it was closed. However, there were no satisfactory findings to shut the speculations about Monroe’s death being a conspiracy or murder. In 1985, things became more suspicious, with a woman claiming her husband visited the actress’s apartment and destroyed her last note.
However, Ronald H. Carroll, the district attorney to conduct the investigation in 1982, said that even if the man destroyed her note, it did not indicate a murder. He mentioned,
“If she was despondent and wrote a note saying, ‘Bobby Kennedy drove me to suicide,’ it is not clear that the taking of that note would have been a crime.”
What Does Monroe’s FBI File Say?
Marilyn Monroe’s FBI file was unfurled after 50 years of her death. The 104-page report secured in the FBI’s Vault says that the feds were well aware of the possibility of her death being a murder. However, the bureau never looked into the claims, and thus, her death remained a mystery.
Final Words
The famous murders in Hollywood have been creating speculations and fueling mysteries for many years now. It’s unfortunate that we had to lose legendary actresses like Natalie Wood and Sharon Tate due to their untimely murders.
These incidents also depict how people living the most lavish and affluent lives often fell prey to murderers and criminals.
Which of the murder incidents discussed in this article seemed the most shocking to you? Do you know of other Hollywood murders that created ripples? Don’t forget to share them with us.
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