People love true crime. They devour the podcasts, binge the series and spend hours burying their heads in Reddit threads and watching TikTok deep dives to find out more of the gruesome details. To say the genre is prodigious would be an understatement.
Netflix, for one, has an impressive slate of hit true crime shows that rarely forsake the rankings. Its first iteration of the Monster series, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, premiered in 2022 and was a record-breaking success, reaching one billion view hours in its first 60 days. It chronicles the brutal murders committed by Jeffrey Dahmer between 1978 and 1991. According to the streaming platform, it is only one of four series, including Stranger Things and Squid Game, to achieve that status.
So it’s no wonder the show’s creators Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan are bringing out a second series, this time following Lyle and Erik Menendez, who murdered their parents in Beverly Hills in 1989.
However, just as The Jeffrey Dahmer Story before it, the trailer for the upcoming story about the Menendez brothers has already received criticism for appearing to glamorise true crime – and in this instance make light of the fact the 'monsters' in question were also alleged victims of sexual abuse.
In the artwork for The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, the actor Evan Peters who played Dahmer was stylised in aviator glasses and the image has a sepia hue. The series was criticised for 'glamorising a serial killer', being 'exploitative', 'perverse' and encouraging viewers to 'lust' over a murderer. It was also accused of re-traumatising the relatives of Dahmer’s victims. The sister of one such victim wrote a personal essay for Insider and said, ‘I was never contacted about the show. I feel like Netflix should’ve asked if we mind or how we felt about making it. They didn’t ask me anything.’
Nevertheless, ratings take precedence. By the looks of the trailer for Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the producers have chosen not to change tact. While the new ten-part series looks like another guaranteed hit for Netflix, it’s likely to face similar criticism to the Jeffrey Dahmer story (the teaser alone features the brothers hugging topless without context) – perhaps with good reason.
Here’s everything you need to know from the release date and plot, to the immediate backlash.
What is the series about?
The series follows brothers Lyle and Erik who fatally shot their parents in their Beverly Hills home in 1989. During their trials, the brothers cited years of abuse as the reason for murdering their parents. However, prosecutors argued that their motive was to claim the family fortune.
Who are the Menendez brothers?
At the time of their parents' deaths, Joseph ‘Lyle’ and Erik Menendez were 18 and 21 years old. They claimed they feared their father would kill them after they threatened to expose him for years of sexual, emotional and physical abuse.
At first, they were tried separately, and each brother had a separate jury. However, the juries deadlocked, resulting in a mistrial. During the second trial, they were tried together and had one jury. They were found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole.
After shooting their parents in their house, both brothers remained at the property expecting the police to arrive after hearing the gunshots. When they arrived, the brothers said the shootings had happened while they were at the cinema watching Batman. The police did not seek gunshot residue tests for the brothers.
Shortly after, they began to spend extravagantly with Lyle buying a Buffalo wing restaurant in New Jersey, a Rolex and a Porsche Carrera. While Erik hired a full-time tennis coach and took part in a series of tournaments in Israel. They also rented their own apartments, took trips to London and the Caribbean and collectively spent $700,000 before their arrests.
It wasn’t until Erik confessed to his psychologist, Jerome Oziel, who told his mistress Judalon Smyth, that the brothers were arrested as suspects. Oziel was reportedly furious that his mistress went to the police and ended the relationship. Lyle was arrested in March 1990 and his brother turned himself in three days later. Oziel’s tapes were used as evidence and the brothers were charged with murder in 1992.
They remain in prison in San Diago. However, in May 2023 they filed documents seeking a new hearing based on new evidence purporting to show that their father had also molested boy-band member, Roy Rossello, after he stated that he’d been drugged and raped by Jose Menendez when he was 14 during a segment on the Today Show.
What criticism has the show received?
While the series is yet to be released, the trailer hints that they will tackle themes of sexual abuse. In the clip, the family are sitting for a group portrait when the mother Kitty says to the father José, 'I need to know what's going on with you and the boys.' He then replies, 'What do you mean?' and Kitty responds, 'I need to know. I don’t want there to be any more lies between us. I won’t tell anyone.' José ends the conversation by leaving the frame and saying, 'It is over. Stop. I’m going to fix this family.'
It then cuts to the two brothers hugging each other without tops on and one of them says, 'It's just us now.'
It paints the familiarly chilling image of a crime series, but are viewers growing tired of murder cases, and in this case alleged victims of sexual assault, being glamorised in the name of a good true crime series? While it is a complex and disturbing story, it is also real life and centres two men who are still serving a life sentence. There is something uncomfortable about the way these stories are extracted for commercial gain and entertainment.
One X user wrote, 'Ryan Murphy will never see peace like are you seriously making a show called MONSTERS: LYLE AND ERIK MENENDEZ when it’s clearly known that they were victims of sexual abuse… with a trailer that includes them both hugging each other shirtless for no apparent reason…'
Journalist Rob Rand, who has covered the case for 35 years and written a book about the brothers, wrote, 'I did not work with the Ryan Murphy series but I plan to watch it carefully and fact check the show after covering the story for 35 years.' After watching the trailer he added, 'WTF are you doing Ryan Murphy and Netflix?'
It's clear that whichever way the team behind the show handle the story, it's likely to be met with a great deal of criticism.
Can I watch the trailer?
Yes, you can watch the teaser here.
Who stars in the series?
Unsurprisingly, there is an impressive cast behind the new show. It stars Javier Bardem (Skyfall, Dune: Part Two) and Chloe Sevigny (American Pyshco) who play the brothers’ parents Jose and Kitty Menendez, while newcomers Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch play the brothers Lyle and Erik.
Nathan Lane (The Lion King, Stuart Little) plays the journalist Dominick Dunne who covered the investigation for Vanity Fair. Leslie Grossman (American Horror Story) will play Judalon Smyth, a former patient and mistress of Erik Menendez’s therapist, Dr. Jerome Oziel, who found herself entangled in the Menendez case — and who ultimately played a key role in Lyle and Erik’s arrests.
Dallas Roberts plays Dr. Jerome Oziel, the therapist who Erik Menendez sees after the murder of his parents.
When is Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story out on Netflix?
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story arrives on Netflix on 19 September.
Nikki Peach is a writer at Grazia UK, covering TV, celebrity interviews, news and features.