Erik Menendez Condemns Netflix Series For Misleading Portrayal

In response to Netflix‘s recent release of the series “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” Erik Menendez has criticized the show for what he describes as “ruinous character portrayals.” Menendez, who is serving a life sentence for the 1996 murders of his parents alongside his brother Lyle, expressed his discontent through an online statement.

“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,” Menendez wrote, specifically calling out Murphy, the creator of the series. He asserted that the show’s narrative rekindles “dishonest” narratives about their lives and inaccurately represents issues of male trauma and sexual abuse.

Menendez, currently incarcerated at the RJ Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego, California, accused the series of aggravating past “lies and ruinous character portrayals” and claimed that this new depiction constitutes backward steps in public understanding of childhood trauma.

In the series, actors Nicholas Chavez and Cooper Koch play Erik and Lyle Menendez, respectively, with Javier Bardem and Chloë Sevigny portraying their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez. The show seeks to dramatize the events surrounding the Menendez brothers’ crime and subsequent court case.

Variety‘s chief TV critic, Aramide Tinubu, also reviewed the series unfavorably, noting that while it attempts to explore the brothers’ trauma, the narrative ultimately feels “futile and bizarre.”

The series has faced contrasting reactions, with Erik Menendez’s statement underscoring deeper concerns about the representation of male victimhood and historical inaccuracies. “Those awful lies have been disputed and exposed by countless brave victims over the last two decades,’ he stated, referencing the depiction of their alleged abuse.

“Is the truth not enough? Let the truth stand as the truth,” Menendez pleaded, hoping for a more truthful reflection of past events instead of dramatized portrayals that may undermine progress in understanding sensitive issues like childhood abuse.