Throughout the film, it is mildly apparent how Chris becomes increasingly uncomfortable and suffocated within his own family of four with a baby boy on the way. Meanwhile, his time with Kessinger brings back memories of his younger days that were bereft of responsibilities
Just days before Christopher Watts was sentenced to life in prison for murdering his pregnant wife and two daughters, his parents claimed he was actually the one being abused in the relationship.
The 33-year-old pleaded guilty to killing his wife Shanann Watts and their children Bella, 4, and Celeste, 3, in exchange for avoiding the death penalty as part of a plea deal. But despite Chris' violent actions, he seemed to have the support of his parents.
While one can say their judgment was clouded owing to their relationship with Chris, was there an element of emotional abuse on Shanann's part that contributed to the horrific killings?
Cindy and Ronnie Watts told ABC 11 WTVD Eyewitness News that their son was suffering at the hands of his wife while she was still alive. According to them, Shanann often kept Chris away from his family. He was “normal” and “not a monster” in their eyes. “It was a very hard relationship, and as far as I’m concerned, I couldn’t do anything right,” Cindy told WTVD.
“He was in sports since he was 5 years old until he was 17 years old,” she continued. “There’s not one person you can talk to that will say anything bad about this kid. He was normal, he didn’t have a temper, he was just like his dad — just easygoing, rolls off his back, goes on.”
Watts initially told authorities he killed his pregnant wife "in a rage" after discovering she had strangled their two daughters to death. He would later admit to police that he was having an extramarital affair with a co-worker, before revealing how he had disposed his wife and kids on an oil site where he had worked at for years. Shanann was buried in a shallow grave, while Bella and Celeste were left submerged inside two oil tanks at the site.
It is hard to understand why Chris committed the violent acts. Many have called him a monster, a psychopath, or just pure evil. But none of those descriptions really explain what led him to commit murder.
A triple homicide is a very aggressive act, and in this case, the aggression is mixed with sadism. Sadism, in not so many words, is revenge for humiliation by taking pleasure inflicting pain onto the humiliator.
Thousands of documents pertaining to Watts' family's annihilation were released after the murder investigations were concluded. While law enforcement did their bit scouring through each and every conversation between Chris and Shanann, mainstream publications chose to gloss over most of the investigative reports, probably fearing it would make the narrative fuzzy and confusing for their viewership.
Lifetime's 'Chris Watts: Confessions of a Killer' indicates there were some instances of humiliation against Chris prior to the murders.
One such incident was when Shanann had a fallout with Chris' parents after they served her children ice cream with peanut chips, despite knowing Celeste had a nut allergy. Shanann felt Chris wasn't doing enough to confront his parents about their behavior with the children and allegedly told him to "find his b***s" so he could stand up for his family.
Another instance dramatized in the movie shows Chris and Shanann sitting in a restaurant waiting to order food. At this juncture, Chris was already having an affair with his mistress Nichol Kessinger and is mentally weighing his relationships with both women in his life. Shanann appears to display some signs of narcissism when she disregards what Chris wants to eat and proceeds to order for both of them.
Throughout the film, it is mildly apparent how Chris becomes increasingly uncomfortable and suffocated within his own family of four with a baby boy on the way. Meanwhile, his time with Kessinger brings back memories of his younger days that were bereft of responsibilities. Furthermore, he thinks Kessinger actually cares for his wants and desires and is a far cry from the dominating nature of his wife Shanann.
While Chris's frustrations do not justify his actions in the least, one must understand that the murders weren't a direct result of madness, or evil, or psychopathy. Instead, they were made by a deceitful, cowardly, angry but also perhaps also humiliated husband.
'Chris Watts: Confessions of a Killer' premieres Saturday 8/7c on Lifetime.
