Netflix Expands Crime Series Based on Lyle and Erik Menendez Murder Case

Netflix is expanding its crime category with an upcoming series based on the case of Lyle and Erik Menendez.

The two brothers, who were 21 and 18 years old when they murdered their parents in 1989, were found guilty of killing José and Mary Louise Menendez and were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Despite growing up in a wealthy family, thanks to their father’s work in the entertainment industry, Lyle and Erik claimed during their court trials that they suffered from physical, emotional, and sexual abuse throughout their childhood.

The Menendez family story became a high-profile case, and now Netflix, along with the creators who worked on the Dahmer series starring Evan Peters, is set to release a series based on their case. The show will star Nicholas Alexander Chavez (Lyle), Cooper Koch (Erik), Javier Bardem (José), Chloë Sevigny (Mary Louise, also known as, “Kitty”), and more in leading roles.

The official trailer, released on Tuesday, August 27, shows the Menendez family posing for a portrait while the parents’ voices play in the background. “I need to know what’s going on with you and the boys,” Mary Louise says. José responds, “What do you mean?” After more conversation, José whispers, “It’s over, it’s done… I’m going to fix this family.” In the next scene, the brothers, bathed in blue light, share an embrace as one says, “It’s just us now, we’re on our own.”

The show will be part of the crime anthology series Monsters, which initially began with executive producer Ryan Murphy’s release of Dahmer, detailing the case of serial killer and cannibal Jeffrey Dahmer. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Murphy reflected on the making of the series, saying, “We weren’t so much interested in Jeffrey Dahmer, the person, but in what made him the monster he became… It’s really about white privilege, systemic racism, and homophobia.”

According to the New York Post, the platform’s description states that the show “dives into the historic case that took the world by storm, paved the way for audiences’ modern-day fascination with true crime, and in return asks those audiences: Who are the real monsters?”

The Menendez story is set to debut on the streaming platform starting September 19.