Ryan Murphy
Noam Galai/Getty Images for TIMERyan Murphy defends his new Netflix show, Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menendezduring the criticism of one of the brothers who were involved in a terrible murder case.
Erik Menendez being slaughtered Monsters in a statement the day after the show aired on September 19, expressing frustration with “Netflix’s dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crime.”
On Monday, September 23, Murphy issued a rebuttal interview with Entertainment Tonight.
“I think it’s interesting that he made a statement that he didn’t see the show,” the producer of the writer, 58, told the outlet, adding, “It’s really hard – if it’s your life – to see your life on the screen.”
Netflix’s Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menéndez worked hard to ensure that the characters resembled their real-life counterparts. The ten-episode limited series, which will air on September 19, follows Lyle and Erik Menéndez, who were convicted of murdering their parents in 1989. The brothers confessed to the crime and said they killed […]
Murphy said “if you watch the show, I’d say 60 to 65 percent” of the narrative centers “on abuse and what they say happened to them. And we do it very carefully and we give them their day in court and they talk openly about it.”
Monsters caused controversy in the way it portrays Erik, 53, and his brother Lyle, 56, when they recount the events that led to their murder case. Siblings – expressed by Cooper Koch again Nicholas Alexander Chavezrespectively – were convicted of murdering their parents in 1989 and remain in prison to this day. Murphy and his baby Monsters our writers offer differing opinions on Erik and Lyle’s motives, including their allegation that they acted in self-defense after years of alleged physical, emotional and sexual abuse.
“It’s the ‘Rashomon’ way, where there were 4 people involved in that. Two of them are dead,” said Murphy Entertainment Tonightcommenting, “What about the parents? We have a responsibility as storytellers to also try to put their point of view based on our research, which we have done.”
Murphy continued, “When you watch this show, what the show does is present the views and opinions of many people involved in this case.
From the kidnapping of Sherri Papini to two separate papers on the murder case of Scott Peterson, it’s safe to say that many broadcast services are investing in true crime in 2024. Netflix and Hulu often cover this genre with a focus on the latest – and most surprising – cases. It was Investigation Discovery, however, that […]
When asked about the plan showing the kinship relationship between brothershe replied “Dominick Dunne he wrote several articles about that idea. We present his opinion. … And we had an obligation to show all of that and we did.”
In his statement last week, Erik ordered Murphy by name.
“It is with a heavy heart that I say, I believe that Ryan Murphy could not be so stupid and inaccurate about the facts of our lives to do this without malicious intent,” he wrote, adding, “It saddens me to know that Netflix’s dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crimes has taken the painful truths a few steps back – back in the day when the prosecutor built the story that men were not sexually assaulted, and that men suffered from rape in a different way than women. Those ugly lies were disrupted and exposed by countless brave victims who came forward in their shame and spoke out bravely.”
He continued: “Murphy is now shaping his horrific narrative with ugly and shocking images of Lyle and I’s characters and depressing slander. Is the truth not enough?”