John Waters on Luigi Mangione: 'Everybody looks better under arrest'

No one says it like John Waters.

The legendary filmmaker and tastemaker — known for films like Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble, and Hairspray — was profiled on Paper magazine. In it, Waters shared his unique insights on one of the hottest topics in America right now: alleged CEO killer Luigi Mangione.

Mangione, like Waters, is from the city of Baltimore (particularly Towson, a mile from Waters' parents' house and where his collaborator and friend Divine went to high school and is buried). As Waters is as connected to that city's legacy as crabs and Edgar Allen Poe, he was asked for his thoughts on the infamous alleged killer, and specifically how a lot of people think he's attractive.

"Well, I guess," Waters replied. "I mean, he's not that cute. He's alright. I did say in one of my early books, 'Everybody looks better under arrest.' I think that has something to do with it. But yeah, it is a phenomenon. Another phenomenon.

Even though Waters is well known for his counter-cultural takes, he warns against becoming too enamored with Mangione (via The Advocate). When the interviewer posited that Mangione is "one of the cuter alleged killers" they've seen in recent memory, Waters pushed back.

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"I don't like to say that because, to be honest, I taught in prison. I help people get out of jail. I have to take that a little more seriously today," he said. "He was a terrorist, is what he is, and it was a terrorist act that worked certainly. But he definitely is a terrorist."