Before he was the star of the Oscar winning The Hurt Locker, Jeremy Renner played serial killer and cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer. The movie, Dahmer, was released eight years ago, in 2002, and it is a role that haunts the actor to this day.

According to Starpulse, Renner can’t go to bars because the Wisconsin-based killer used to pick up his victims in bars. He’s too aware of the potential danger.

He says, “It really messed with me for a couple of years, that role. I couldn’t go into bars alone. I still really can’t. It makes me think about how easy it is to put something in someone’s drink and then have your way with them. I mean, oh my gosh. It’s just one of those things where someone who has a lot of free time can do a lot of good, or a lot of bad.”

Dahmer sentenced to life in 1992 after he was found guilty of 15 murders. He was killed in prison in 1994.

Renner earned an Independent Spirit Award nomination for his role in the film. He later went on to feature in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and 28 Weeks Later.