The actor behind Lyle Menendez in Netflix’s hit new series of Monsters has responded to his real-life counterpart’s brother, Erik, slamming the show.
Erik released a statement from jail, via his wife Tammi, in which he called the Netflix series ‘blatant lies’, slamming in particular the show’s portrayal of his brother Lyle.
An extract of the statement reads: “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.”
Erik and Lyle Menendez, who became infamous for killing their parents in 1989, accused their father Jose of sexually abusing them.
Whilst this is covered in the show, Erik was not pleased with the show’s creator, Ryan Murphy’s portrayal of it.
The Menendez brothers, Lyle and Erik.
Erik went on to say:
“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.”
Nicolas Alexander Chavez
The actor who portrays Lyle in the show, Nicolas Alexander Chavez, told USA Today: “I can only respond with sympathy and empathy in that I can only imagine how difficult it is to have the most traumatic moment of your life put up there on the screen for everyone to see.”
Alexander Chavez is not the first person linked to the show to respond to the criticism from Erik.
The statement elicited a response from the show’s creator Ryan Murphy, who said: “What about the parents? We had an obligation to storytellers to also try and put in their perspective, based on our research, which we did.”
He went on to point to the fact the show is ’60 to 65 per cent’ focused on their abuse, saying: “We do it very carefully, and we give them their day in court, and they talk openly about it, we present the facts from their point of view.”
Ryan Murphy’s Monsters (formerly Monster) has been a huge hit on Netflix, following the harrowing story of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, with the disturbing and layered story of the Menendez brothers and how they murdered their parents using shotguns.
Brutal and horrific, the story has again captured the attention of true crime fans as a dramatised version of events has been released on the streaming platform.
Viewers have already complained about the creators ‘sexualising’ the relationship between the brothers, as they did with Dahmer, while some eagle-eyed fans will also have noticed that an Amazon Ring doorbell features in the series, which is set at the time of the crime in the 1980s.
Erik Menendez has even released a statement about the portrayals of him and his brother, criticising creator and director Murphy.
He stated: “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.”
Erik Menendez has openly criticised the show from prison (Los Angeles Times / Contributor)
Erik called the portrayal ‘dishonest’ and ‘sad’, suggesting that their story has taken ‘several steps backward’.
He added that he appreciated people supporting him and those that reached out to him.
But now, it looks like fans have found out another inconsistency in the story – it is a dramatisation after all.
One user took to Reddit, speaking about the court scene in particular, saying about Erik: “He genuinely does need glasses. I have no idea why that bull***t show is saying otherwise.”
Apparently, the convicted murderer does actually have blurred vision, requiring glasses, which is contrary to what the show states.
Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Chloë Sevigny, Javier Bardem and Cooper Koch as the Menendez family (Netflix)
Another user commented: “I know there are better things to be angry at with this show, but damn Erik can’t even be disabled without being bullied by Ryan Murphy.”
A third said: “I don’t understand why he always has to change the most minuscule things in every show he does. It’s annoying and it comes off as him not putting any effort into his research.”
A fourth pointed out: “All he had to do was view the trial for ten minutes and he’d see that every time Eric had to read or look at something he had to put on his glasses like come on.”
Warning: this article mentions SA which some readers may find distressing.
Netflix has confirmed that a documentary seeing Lyle and Erik Menendez tell their version of the murders of José and Kitty Menendez in 1989.
The story of the Menendez brothers is once again at the forefront of public consciousness, thanks to the case being the subject of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.
Following its release earlier this month, Monsters has shot to number one on the streaming site and been heavily talked about online.
Now, Lyle and Erik will be telling their version of events in their own words, as Netflix has confirmed today (23 September) that The Menendez Brothers will be airing on the platform next month.
In the trailer, Erik and Lyle can be heard speaking from behind bars at Donovan Correctional Facility, California – where they are currently serving life sentences – and vowing to make sure people ‘understand the truth’.
The Menendez brothers’ case became infamous across the US in the 90s during the televised trial. Defence lawyers argued that Erik and Lyle had killed their parents in self-defence, following allegations of sexual abuse at the hands of their father, José.
Meanwhile, the prosecution would argue the boys shot their parents multiple times with shotguns for financial benefit.
Their first trial in 1993 ended as a mistrial before the pair were later convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
“Everybody asks why we killed our parents,” one of the brothers can be heard saying in the trailer. “Maybe now people can understand the truth.”
.jpg)
Erik and Lyle Menendez
The documentary also promises to touch on renewed interest in the case, including movements online – particularly on social media platforms such as TikTok – which want to see the brothers released from jail.
Meanwhile, Erik has since spoken against his and Lyle’s depiction in Monsters, accusing Murphy of telling ‘blatant lies’ in the series.
Slamming the show in a statement, he said: “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.”
Netflix’s Monsters may have only been released today, but that isn’t stopping viewers from already tearing it apart.
The follow up season to the Ryan Murphy show, which brought the story of Jeffrey Dahmer to life, is focused on the stories of Lyle and Erik Menendez.
The Menendez Brothers were made infamous across America after they were found guilty of having killed their parents.
The duo shot their mother and father with a pair of 12-gauge shotguns in 1989, before calling 911 crying saying ‘somebody killed’ their parents.
Their trial, from 1993 to 1996, was publicised across America, with the pair receiving life without parole.
They claimed that they were abused by their father, and this had motivated the murders, as well as claims from their defence that he had threatened their lives to try keep them quiet.
This has led to a great deal of controversy surrounding the show, with supporters of the pair insisting it has to be included in the story to be accurate, with others insisting that it hasn’t been proven, so shouldn’t be included.
The Menendez Brothers (Ted Soqui via Getty Images)
The show does not hang about, with the Menendez brothers killing their parents in the very first scene in a graphically over-the-top fashion.
One tweet, however, pointed to an inaccuracy in this portrayal – a mistake which they say is made in every single portrayal of the killing.
They posted: “Why does every show about the Menendez brothers get the shooting scene WRONG EVERY TIME!!!
This plays into a common debate around Monster and shows like it, as to whether accuracy for real events is more important than the telling of a true story. This debate has been huge in both the release of this second season and in the aftermath of the release of season one.
The show released today, September 19 (Netflix)
One reply disagreed with this being an issue, saying: “It’s a TV show and showing their reaction is more cinematic. It’s not that hard to understand. Things are going to be dramatised.”
Netflix recently announced that the third season, which had previously been announced would focus on Ed Gein, a serial killer who inspired movie murderers like Norman Bates and Leatherface.
Gein’s horrific crimes included the murder of multiple women, and grave robbing to create horrific everyday objects such as clothes made of skins and skulls used to eat soup out of.
Viewers have praised the casting decisions behind Netflix’s new series telling the story of the Menendez brothers.
Following the success of Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, showrunners Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan are back with another instalment of their true crime anthology, this time with another high profile case.
Premiering yesterday (19 September), Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story follows the high profile case of the Menendez brothers, who were convicted of killing their parents.
The brothers would go one to become infamous across the United States when their trial was broadcast via Court TV, with people around the country tuning in to learn the grisly details of the case.
Joseph ‘Lyle’ Menendez was born in 1968, with his younger brother Erik arriving two years later in 1970. To outsiders, it seemed like the Menendez family had a successful life. Their father, José Menendez, worked as an executive at RCA Records and took the family to Beverly Hills, which allowed them to live an affluent lifestyle.
Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Chloë Sevigny, Javier Bardem and Cooper Koch as the Menendez family (Netflix)
However, the facade would all come crashing down on 20 August 1989 when José and his wife Kitty were brutally shot in their own home. Three years later, the boys were charged with the murder of their parents.
Lyle and Erik’s defence argued the killings were in self-defence after suffering emotional and sexual abuse at their father’s hands, while the prosecution alleged the killings were motivated by financial greed.
Lyle and Erik were later found guilty of their parent’s murders and sentenced to life in prison.
The real life Menendez brothers (Ted Soqui/Sygma via Getty Images)
Despite taking place over two decades ago, the case is once again at the forefront of public consciousness due to the release of the Netflix series, which stars Chloë Sevigny, Javier Bardem, Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch as Kitty, José, Lyle and Nick respectively.
The series may have divided viewers over it’s depiction of the brothers’ relationship, while others complained about the show dramatising elements of the story.
However, fans are in total agreement over one thing, the casting of the show’s main stars and their resemblance to the real life counterparts.
