Javier Bardem
José Menendez
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story
“Are they monsters?”
2024
1 Season • 9 Episodes
Overview
The story of the Menéndez brothers, who were convicted in 1996 of murdering their parents José and Mary Louise “Kitty” Menéndez.
Cast
Reviews
5 min read AI-generated editorial review
Inheritance as Crime Scene
There’s a particular coldness in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story that I kept noticing before I could even name it. Not the obvious kind — not just the story’s murders, or the usual Ryan Murphy taste for beautiful surfaces with rot underneath — but the colder feeling of being told that a family can become a courtroom long before the actual court arrives. The series, the second installment in Murphy and Ian Brennan’s Monsters anthology for Netflix, turns the Menéndez case into something slipperier than a true-crime retelling. It’s not really asking whether the brothers did it. That’s the least interesting question here, and the show knows it. What it’s obsessed with is the machinery of family mythology: what gets hidden in plain sight, what gets whispered in closed rooms, what sort of damage can be mistaken for privilege.
That focus places the series in a familiar Murphy lane, though not entirely the same one. Murphy’s best work has always understood that American domestic life is theater — Nip/Tuck, Feud, even the more melodramatic stretches of American Horror Story — but here he and Brennan aim that sensibility at a case already overdetermined by tabloid culture, courtroom TV, and endless internet second-guessing. The result is both more serious and, at times, more self-conscious than I wanted. There are stretches where the series feels less like a revelation than an argument with the accumulated memory of the case. Still, that argument is where the show gets interesting. It understands that the Menéndez brothers have lived for decades not just as convicted murderers but as symbols onto which people project fantasies about abuse, greed, masculinity, and what counts as a “believable” victim.
One reason the series keeps catching me off guard is its willingness to linger on the textures of power. Javier Bardem, as José Menéndez, doesn’t play the character as a cartoon tyrant. He’s all clipped movement and controlled volume, the kind of man whose anger doesn’t spill so much as condense. Bardem has made a long career out of men who seem physically to occupy more air than they should — from No Country for Old Men to Skyfall — and here he uses that same heaviness differently. José is often framed in doorways, at the edge of tables, or in the center of rooms that feel arranged around his needs. He doesn’t need to shout to dominate. He only has to pause. That pause becomes its own threat.
There’s a particular coldness in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story that I kept noticing before I could even name it. Not the obvious kind — not just the story’s murders, or the usual Ryan Murphy taste for beautiful surfaces with rot underneath — but the colder feeling of being told that a family can become a courtroom long before the actual court arrives. The series, the second installment in Murphy and Ian Brennan’s Monsters anthology for Netflix, turns the Menéndez case into something slipperier than a true-crime retelling. It’s not really asking whether the brothers did it. That’s the least interesting question here, and the show knows it. What it’s obsessed with is the machinery of family mythology: what gets hidden in plain sight, what gets whispered in closed rooms, what sort of damage can be mistaken for privilege.
That focus places the series in a familiar Murphy lane, though not entirely the same one. Murphy’s best work has always understood that American domestic life is theater — Nip/Tuck, Feud, even the more melodramatic stretches of American Horror Story — but here he and Brennan aim that sensibility at a case already overdetermined by tabloid culture, courtroom TV, and endless internet second-guessing. The result is both more serious and, at times, more self-conscious than I wanted. There are stretches where the series feels less like a revelation than an argument with the accumulated memory of the case. Still, that argument is where the show gets interesting. It understands that the Menéndez brothers have lived for decades not just as convicted murderers but as symbols onto which people project fantasies about abuse, greed, masculinity, and what counts as a “believable” victim.
One reason the series keeps catching me off guard is its willingness to linger on the textures of power. Javier Bardem, as José Menéndez, doesn’t play the character as a cartoon tyrant. He’s all clipped movement and controlled volume, the kind of man whose anger doesn’t spill so much as condense. Bardem has made a long career out of men who seem physically to occupy more air than they should — from No Country for Old Men to Skyfall — and here he uses that same heaviness differently. José is often framed in doorways, at the edge of tables, or in the center of rooms that feel arranged around his needs. He doesn’t need to shout to dominate. He only has to pause. That pause becomes its own threat.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reports AI-researched entertainment notes
Netflix’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story Sparks Controversy—and Record Views
Netflix’s latest true-crime drama, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, has become an instant sensation—and a lightning rod for backlash. The second season of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s Monster anthology series, which premiered in September 2024, revisits the infamous 1989 murders of José and Kitty Menendez by their sons, Lyle and Erik. With Javier Bardem and Chloë Sevigny leading a star-studded cast, the show has dominated streaming charts—but not without drawing criticism from the real-life figures at its center.
A True-Crime Juggernaut with Star Power
The series marks a high-profile return for Murphy’s Monster franchise, following the success of its first season, The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story boasts an A-list cast, including Bardem as José Menendez, Sevigny as Kitty Menendez, and rising actors Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch as Lyle and Erik, respectively 
. The show’s nine-episode run has already made waves, topping Netflix’s global charts within days of its release .
But the series’ success hasn’t shielded it from scrutiny. True-crime adaptations often walk a fine line between dramatization and exploitation, and Monsters has faced accusations of sensationalism—particularly from one of its real-life subjects.
The Backlash: Lyle Menendez Speaks Out
One of the most explosive reactions came from Lyle Menendez himself. The real-life Lyle, now serving life in prison, reportedly criticized the series for its portrayal of events, calling it misleading . His objections echo long-standing debates about how true-crime media shapes public perception of high-profile cases. While the show’s creators have defended their approach, the controversy has only fueled more discussion—and more views.
Ryan Murphy, the series’ co-creator, addressed the backlash in a recent interview, acknowledging the challenges of adapting such a polarizing case. "We wanted to explore the complexities of the story, not just the crime itself," Murphy said, though specifics about his creative process remain scarce [6].
Why This Case Still Captivates
The Menendez brothers’ trial became a cultural phenomenon in the 1990s, thanks in part to sensational media coverage and the brothers’ claims of abuse at the hands of their parents. The case has been revisited in documentaries, books, and now, this high-profile Netflix series. Monsters leans into the drama, with Bardem and Sevigny delivering performances that have already sparked awards buzz [1].
But the show’s biggest draw may be its unflinching look at the case’s most contentious elements—including the brothers’ defense strategy, which argued that years of alleged abuse drove them to violence. Whether Monsters will change public opinion—or simply reignite old debates—remains to be seen.
What’s Next for the Series?
With the show already a streaming hit, speculation about future seasons of Monster is inevitable. Murphy has hinted at more true-crime stories in the pipeline, though no official announcements have been made [6]. For now, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story remains a lightning rod for debate, proving that some cases never truly fade from the public eye.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.
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