The creator of controversial Netflix show ‘Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story’ has hit back at viewers who criticized the show.
Showrunner Ryan Murphy spoke out following the release of the series on September 19, with scenes depicting the brothers in an incestuous homoerotic relationship sparking anger from some viewers.
Explaining the reason for the scenes, Murphy said he felt it was important to ‘present the points of view and theories from so many people who were involved in the case’ – even as some question whether they actually happened.
He noted that journalist Dominick Dunne, played by Nathan Lane in the series, ‘wrote several articles talking about that theory’ at the time the brothers’ murder trials were capturing national attention in 1996.
‘We are presenting (Dunne’s) point of view. And we had an obligation to show all of that and we did,’ Murphy told Entertainment Tonight.
It comes as Netflix raised eyebrows by announcing a documentary on the murders weeks after Murphy’s series, with some supporters of the brothers arguing they should have had their voices heard before the fictitious version was released.
Ryan Murphy has been blasted for making brothers Erik and Lyle Menendez kiss in his new Netflix show Monsters
The shocking moment unfolds in the show’s second episode, titled Spree
Lyle and Erik Menendez were convicted in 1996 of murdering their parents Jose and Kitty in 1989, with prosecutors saying the slayings were motivated by the brothers inheriting their parents’ wealth.
The brothers countered that they were sexually and emotionally abused by their father throughout their childhoods.
With a new spotlight falling on the case, some people have taken the side of the brothers and see them as victims, and say that the show overlooks the complexities of the killings.
The backlash was led by Erik himself, who said in a statement: ‘I believed we had moved beyond the lies and ruinous character portrayals of Lyle, creating a caricature of Lyle rooted in horrible and blatant lies rampant in the show. I can only believe they were done so on purpose.
‘It is with a heavy heart that I say, I believe Ryan Murphy cannot be this naive and inaccurate about the facts of our lives so as to do this without bad intent.’
Murphy shot back this week, saying: ‘I think it’s interesting that he’s issued a statement without having seen the show.’
‘It’s really, really hard — if it’s your life — to see your life up on screen,’ he said.
Ryan Murphy shot back at critics of the show, and said he felt it was important to ‘present he points of view and theories from so many people who were involved in the case’
Erik Menendez (right) slammed the show and said it was ‘rooted in horrible and blatant lies’
The showrunner also dismissed claims that he overlooked the alleged abuse inflicted on the brothers.
‘The thing that I find interesting that he doesn’t mention in his quote, is if you watch the show, I would say 60 to 65 percent of our show in the scripts and in the film form center around the abuse and what they claim happened to them,’ he said.
‘And we do it very carefully and we give them their day in court and they talk openly about it.’
Murphy admitted that dealing with the issue of sexual abuse ‘can be controversial’, but said he felt it was important to offer a broad, multi-faceted perspective out of respect for everyone involved.
‘There were four people involved in that, and two of them are dead,’ he concluded. ‘What about the parents? We had an obligation as storytellers to also try and put in their perspective based on our research, which we did.’
The Menendez brothers shot their parents to death with shotguns in their Beverly Hills home, with prosecutors saying they were motivated by inheritance while the brothers said they were victims of horrific sexual abuse
Monsters premiered on Netflix on September 19 and depicts the brothers as spoiled brats who went on a spending spree after they gunned down their parents.
Later in the series, the sexual abuse of the brothers from both of their parents is shown, which alludes to Lyle and Erik’s real motives for the killings.
In the new show, Erik is portrayed in the series by Cooper Koch, while Lyle is played in the series by Nicholas Alexander Chavez.
Javier Bardem plays their father José Menendez and Chloë Sevigny plays their mother Kitty.
In his statement following the release of the series, Erik said: ‘It is sad for me to know that Netflix’s dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crime have taken the painful truths several steps backward
‘Back through time to an era when the prosecution built a narrative on a belief system that males were not sexually abused, and that males experienced rape trauma differently than women.’
‘Those awful lies have been disrupted and exposed by countless brave victims over the last two decades who have broken through their personal shame and bravely spoken out,’ Erik pointed out.
‘So now Murphy shapes his horrible narrative through vile and appalling character portrayals of Lyle and of me and disheartening slander,’ he wrote.
Erik and Lyke were convicted in 1996 of the 1989 murder of their parents, and remain in prison
Erik is portrayed in the series by Cooper Koch, while Lyle is played in the series by Nicholas Alexander Chavez
The show opened to a scathing review from The Wrap, which slammed Murphy for his ‘salacious and exploitative’ portrayal of the infamous murder case.
Fans also took to social media to criticize the show, with some calling it ‘hard to watch.’
Taking to X, one said: ‘If Ryan wanted to make a show about twin brothers developing an intimate relationship with each other due to shared sexual trauma and parental abuse, then he should’ve written a new story.
‘You don’t get to rewrite the experience of real people and REAL VICTIMS to suit yourself!’