Netflix Users Are Warning Each Other Over One Menendez Brothers Scene In Monsters

There’s a new Ryan Murphy true crime series on Netflix, and in a “water is wet”-style situation, it’s generating controversy. “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” which is climbing the Netflix charts, is the latest installment in Murphy’s “Monster” anthology, which started with the extremely awkwardly titled “Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.” That series, which depicted the crimes of cannibal serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, garnered some side-eye reactions and plenty of controversy, primarily from the families of Dahmer’s victims, who felt the series was exploiting their tragedy. 

“The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” seems to be having a similar effect. In true Ryan Murphy fashion, the show frequently goes over-the-top to depict its true story, and some folks are taking issue, including members of the Menendez family. If you grew up in the late 1980s and early 1990s, as I did, you’re likely somewhat familiar with the story, but if not, here’s a brief recap. In 1989, wealthy husband and wife José and Kitty Menendez were murdered in their mansion in Beverly Hills. Their sons, Lyle and Erik, claimed they came home and discovered the bodies. However, the brothers were eventually arrested for the crimes. At first, they maintained their innocence. Then the story changed: Lyle and Erik claimed they had suffered horrible abuse at the hands of their father over the years, adding that their mother had knowledge of and was complicit in the abuse. Because of this, the brothers claimed killing their parents was a kind of self-defense. 

The brothers were first tried separately, and in both trials, the juries were deadlocked. Later, the brothers were tried together, and this time, the jury found them guilty and sentenced them to life in prison without the possibility of parole. “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” delves into the sordid events behind the crimes, and the first episode alone has plenty of people talking for one big reason: it depicts the murders in graphic fashion. 

When dramatizing a true crime story, filmmakers are faced with a tricky position. Do they depict the crimes without flinching away from the violence, or do they keep most of the violence off screen? “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” takes the former approach. As the first episode, titled “Blame It on the Rain,” begins, the murders have already happened, and the brothers have yet to be charged with the crimes. However, Erik (Cooper Koch) eventually tells his psychologist Dr. Jerome Oziel (Dallas Roberts) the truth: he and his brother Lyle (Nicholas Alexander Chavez) murdered their parents, José (Javier Bardem) and Kitty (Chloë Sevigny). 

As Erik tells the story, “Monsters” flashes back to the night of the crimes, and shows Erik and Lyle barging into their home with shotguns and brutally murdering their parents. Every gunshot is shown in shockingly graphic detail, underscoring how brutal and violent the murders were. And it seems this graphic violence is catching some people off guard. “I was actually shaken by how graphic the murder scene was. It’s Ryan Murphy, I shouldn’t have been, but it was horrific to watch,” said one user on Twitter, aka X. “Crazy thing about the new Monsters: Menendez Story is that it’s extremely graphic than any other film they made about the case,” said another person. 

Someone else added: “They didn’t have to make the scene when they killed their parents that graphic. SHEESH.” And yet another individual stated: “The ‘Monsters’ movie [sic] on Netflix is way too graphic for my liking… Had to switch it off halfway through.” These are just a small amount of people taking to Twitter to talk about the scene, but you get the idea: it’s very, very violent, and it seems most viewers were not expecting that. So if you’re thinking of watching the series and have a hard time handling depictions of violence, it’s best to proceed with caution.

“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” is now streaming on Netflix.