Richard Cross (Murder One)
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Richard Cross is a fictional character featured prominently in the first season of the series Murder One. He was portrayed by Stanley Tucci, who was nominated for an Emmy for the role [1].
Richard Cross was a millionaire businessman known for his extravagant tastes and active social life. He fraternized with social groups from movie starts to mob bosses. Though at the beginning of the series, he was married to Francesca Cross (nee Romano), who later divorced him, he had affairs with numerous women, most notably model Julie Costello.
After Julie's teenage sister Jessica was murdered while staying in an apartment owned by Richard, he went to his friend attorney Ted Hoffman to ask Ted to represent him in the matter.
The police arrested Richard after obtaining a surveillance tape showing Richard leaving the apartment shortly after Jessica's murder. In lock-up, Richard admitted to Ted that Jessica was at the apartment with young movie actor Neil Avedon. She said they'd gotten into an argument and she'd asked Richard to come over. When he arrived, Neil was gone and Jessica was dead.
Richard was exonerated soon after when a woman named Beverly Nichols told police Richard had been with her that night, providing him with an alibi. Neil was then arrested for Jessica's murder. Richard urged Ted to represent Neil, offering to waive the conflict of interests and attorney-client privilege. Ted reluctantly agreed.
Ted made it clear that his defense of Neil would have to paint Richard as a likely alternative suspect. Though he claimed to be Neil's friend, Ted suspected Richard still knew more about Jessica's murder than he was letting on. Additionally, Ted suspected Richard was manipulating events to ensure Neil's conviction. After Ted learned that Holly Gerges, an obsessed fan who had been stalking Neil and had written a letter threatening Jessica, he hoped to show her as an alternative suspect as well, though she was murdered soon after. Ted also suspected Richard was behind the murder of Ted's private investgator Dave Blalock, who had been on the verge of securing a tape undermining Richard's alibi. When Ted's young daughter was briefly abducted, Ted suspected Richard was involved as well.
When Ted placed Julie on the stand, intending to reveal Richard's sexual activities, he and the court were shocked when she announced that only hours earlier, she and Richard had married in Reno, Nevada, making it impossible for her to be compelled to testify against him. He also went into business with Justine Appleton, one of Ted's associates, possibly to coerce her into working against Ted, which led to Ted firing her when he found out (though he later took her back after she turned against Richard).
It was later learned that Richard was HIV-positive and to prevent infecting anyone else with the disease, he would get sexual gratification by setting up both Julie and Jessica with various men, then have them describe their sexual encounters to him in graphic detail. Given Richard's reputation as a voyeur, Ted suspected that he had placed a video camera in Jessica's bedroom: a camera that might have recorded the murder. Though the camera was quickly discoved, the tape was missing.
Ted appealed to Richard, who was now in the final stages of AIDS to give him the tape and testify as to its authenticity in court, for both Neil and Jessica's sake. With nothing left to lose, Richard agreed. The tape and Richard's testimony finally revealed the story: Richard had gone into business with a Brazilian cocaine dealer named Roberto Portalegre and eventually set him up with Jessica. After Portalegre killed her in an argumuent, he forced Richard to cover up the murder, which led to him conspiring to frame Neil. Richard revealed that Portalegre was behind the murders of Dave Blalock and Holly Gerges and the abduction of Ted's daughter. Richard said he was afriad of Portalegre, but now that he was dying, he had nothing to lose by telling the truth.
Though Neil could not forgive Richard, Ted was at least grateful for his actions and the two reconciled to some extent. Neil was exonerated and Roberto Portalgre was arrested for Jessica's murder. Text at the end of the season finale revealed that Richard died nine days after taking the stand.
