Ryan Murphy’s latest Netflix series, “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” dives deep into the infamous case of the Menendez brothers, who were convicted of murdering their parents in 1989.
This new season of the “Monster” anthology series follows the massive success of “Dahmer” and will be uncovering the very complicated lives of the two brothers in ten episodes.
On the night of August 20, 1989, 21-year-old Lyle and 18-year-old Erik Menendez, went into their Beverly Hills mansion armed with shotguns and brutally murdered their parents, José and Kitty Menendez. It was reported that the crime scene was so violent that the police thought that it was the handiwork of a mob group.
However, the investigation was steered in the right direction when Erik confessed to his psychologist, Jerome Oziel, who later shared the information with his mistress, Judalon Smyth. Judalon tipped off the police and this led to the brothers’ arrest in 1990. The trial of the Menendez brothers became a media sensation, partly because of the shocking nature of the crime and partly due to the defense’s argument. The brothers claimed that they had acted out of fear after enduring years of abuse ~ which would sometimes be sexual ~ from their parents.
The prosecutors on the case had thought differently at the time and alleged that the Menendez brothers had acted on their greed to seize their parents assets. They argued that the crime was premeditated. The authorities had also revealed that about $700,000 from the brothers’ inheritance had been splurged on luxury items, almost immediately after their parents’ death.
“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” stars Nicholas Chavez and Cooper Koch as Lyle and Erik, respectively. The series also features Javier Bardem as José Menendez and Chloë Sevigny as Kitty. Overall, the show aims to explore whether the brothers were cold-blooded murderers seeking their inheritance or victims of severe abuse.
You can watch the Netflix trailer below.
