Sean Penn Reveals Haunting Thoughts While Alone With the 'Night Stalker' During 1987 Jail Sentence: 'I Could Flatten Him Out'

Sean Penn shared a chilling story of being trapped alone with the infamous "Night Stalker" while he was imprisoned in Los Angeles in 1987.

Penn, 65, recalled crossing paths with Richard Ramirez in a July 16 interview with VICE News. The actor spent 34 days in the Los Angeles County jail at the height of his career for assault and reckless driving.

"I got moved out of general population because of some kind of threat," he explained. "And a lot of guys on this department... they invest a lot in pretending not to give a s--- about Hollywood culture, but they sure do like to gossip."

"So I slept with one eye open, of course," he said.

Penn, who was 27 and married to Madonna at the time, was transferred into a small cell by himself to avoid prisoners who wanted to mess with the Hollywood star.

"Then I got moved to [an] eight and a half by 11 by myself for most of the time," Penn revealed. "And through a little wire glass door, there's Richard Ramirez, not 20 feet away. And we're both insomniacs."

Ramirez was jailed in 1985 and sentenced to the death penalty in 1989 for 13 counts of murder, 14 burglaries, 11 counts of sexual assault and five counts of attempted murder.

The serial killer was infamous for breaking into people's homes in the night to rob and murder them.

In one instance, Penn recalled being shackled by his stomach for a phone call and guided to sit directly beside the infamous killer, who was receiving a call of his own.

"There's nobody else there," Penn said. "There's nobody in there because somebody was throwing feces at somebody. It was a crazy kind of thing happening. And I did have that question. I knew what he did to some of these people. This wasn't today's phones or your cellphone, right?"

As he sat next to Ramirez, almost completely alone, Penn recalled a violent thought entering his mind.

"I'm right next to him," said spilled. "I could, I could ..."

"Flatten him out?" the interviewer asked.

Penn confirmed the idea, revealing he found himself in a similar situation at least "twice" during his brief stint in jail.

"But who was I?" continued Penn. "It was just another person. And I'm so glad I didn't think I was important enough to do that, but you have the thought."

Penn was released early from jail in September 1987 for good behavior.

Ramirez died in 2013 from cancer while awaiting his death sentence. He was 53 years old.

In 2015, the actor revealed that Ramirez had noticed him and wanted his autograph while they were behind bars.

"So, I get this thing from him, and it says, ‘Hey Sean, stay tough and hit them again — Richard Ramirez, 666,’ with a pentagram and a rendition of the devil," he recalled. "I said, ‘You know, Richard, it’s impossible to be incarcerated and not feel a certain kinship with your fellow inmates. Well, Richard, I’ve done the impossible. I feel absolutely no kinship with you. And I hope gas descends upon you before sanity does, you know? It would be a kinder way out.’"

"And they gave it to him," said Penn. "And then my house burned down years later, and that d--- thing of his burned with it."