Netflix’sMonsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyclosely follows many events surrounding the Menendez brothers' crimes but ends up missing a few crucial details. Serving as a follow-up toDahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyadopts a storytelling style where it tries to draw no judgments about the killers' actions it follows. Instead of portraying them as the titular “monsters,” it seems more interested in drawing a clearer picture of what led to Lyle and Erik Menendez committing the murder of their parents.
Unfortunately, even though the show tries to adopt a neutral perspective,Erik Menendez has slammedMonstersseason 2for its take on his story. A day after Netflix’sMonsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story’s release, he called the series “dishonest” and even used the words “naive and inaccurate” to describe Ryan Murphy. Whether Erik Menendez is entirely right about the Netflix series is debatable. However, there are some details about the true story of the two brothers the show seemingly misses.
10Erik Menendez Was A Talented Tennis Player
He Ranked 44 In The US
In its opening moments,Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyhighlights how the central siblings played tennis and how their father put immense pressure on them to perform well in the sport. What it does not reveal is that Erik Menendez was an incredibly talented tennis player. He was not among the top 50 players in the US as a junior buthad also enrolled in the 1989 Boys' Junior National Tennis Championship just two weeks before he killed his parents. He even reached the second round of the championship before losing a match and getting eliminated.
9The Police Avoided One Crucial Piece Of Evidence Surrounding The Murder
They Didn’t Check For Gunshot Residue
TheNetflix true-crime showaccurately highlights how the police initiallydid not even consider the idea that the brothers might have killed their parents. Instead, they believed the brothers' claims and investigated the possibility of the mob’s involvement in the crime. However, the show does not underscore one piece of real-life evidence that would have proved the Menendez brothers killed their parents.
After Erik and Lyle Menendez called the police to the crime scene, they still should have had some residue from their shotguns' gunpowder on their bodies and clothes. This would have been enough to prove they were responsible for the crime. However, since the police initially did not see them as potential suspects, they did not bother checking them for gunpowder residue.
8Some Family Members Disputed The Claims About The Menendez Brothers' Spending Habits
They Argued Their Habits Never Changed
Even in the real murder case, the sudden change in the Menendez brothers' spending habits after their parents' deaths garnered a lot of attention. As the show accurately highlights, it also became a crucial piece of circumstantial evidence that highlighted how they killed their parents for money. According to reports,they spent close to $700,000 before they were arrested. However, the Netflix series does not show that some of their relatives later supported them by claiming that their spending habits had always been the same and did not significantly change after their parents died.
7The Netflix Series Introduces One Major Change To The Real Events Timeline
Erik’s Confession To His Psychologist Came Much Later
Netflix’sMonsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyportrays that Erik’s confession to his psychologist, Jerome Oziel, triggered a chain reaction of events that eventually led to the brothers' arrest. In the show’s timeline of events, the police later wiretap his friend, Craig Cignarelli, hoping he will make Erik confess he committed the crime. In real life, however, things unfolded slightly differently.
In the real murder case, it was also highly debated whether the recording between Erik and his psychologist could be used as evidence of the crime in court.
Erik’s interaction with his psychologist happened after the police asked Craig Cignarelli to get a confession out of him. In the real murder case, it was also highly debated whether the recordings between Erik and his psychologist could be used as evidence of the crime in court. However, the court eventually accepted the recordings as evidence.
6Erik & Lyle Were Held In Different Prisons When They Were First Arrested
They End Up In Adjacent Cells In The Show
Perhaps, to make its crime drama more entertaining,Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyshows Erik and Lyle in two adjacent cells after they get arrested the first time for the central crime. In reality, however, the brothers were initially held in different prisons altogether after their arrest. This creative decision from the show’s end seeminglyallows it to explore the brothers' relationship and shared prison struggles more intimately. By portraying them in adjacent cells in the same prison, the Netflix series tries to underscore how much they relied on one another to survive prison.
5Lyle’s Prosecutor, Pam Bozanich, Made A Controversial Argument
He Said “Men Cannot Be Raped”
During the trial, prosecutor Pam Bozanich argued (viaCourtTV)“men could not be raped because they lack the necessary equipment to be raped.“Her statement drew a clear picture of how sexual violence against men was often trivialized and overlooked at the time. In his criticism, Erik Menendez also expressed his disappointment towards the show for not covering this detail by saying that it goes “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.”
4The Brothers Did Not See Each Other For Over Two Decades After The Verdict
They Stayed Out Apart For 22 Years
Netflix’sMonsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyends on a poignant note, where the two titular brothers are transferred to new prisons after the final verdict concludes they will be sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Although they initially believe they will end up in the same prison, the closing scene shows how they were eventually held in separate correctional facilities. This aspect has been accurately depicted in the series, but it does not reveal what happened to the brothers after they were separated.
Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez StoryCast
Leslie Grossman
Judalon Smyth
In April 2018, almost 22 years after the verdict, Lyle Menendez ended up in the same housing unit as his brother. According to reports (viaNew York Daily News), when the two brothers finally met after over two decades of separation,they burst into tears and hugged each other. They are still in the same housing unit where inmates agree to become a part of education and rehabilitation programs.
3New Evidence Encouraged The Brothers To Demand A New Hearing In 2023
Their Attorneys Hope To Overturn Their Life Sentence
On July 25, 2025, a former member of the boy band Menundo, Roy Rosselló, stated that he was drugged and sexually assaulted by José Menéndez when he was 14 years old (viaNY Times). Since this served as alleged evidence for José Menéndez’s pattern of abusive and violent behavior towards minors,Erik and Lyle Menendez demanded a new hearing. Although some experts have claimed that this new information surrounding the case has come to light too late, the brothers' attorneys have been hopeful that it could overturn their life sentence (viaCNN),
2Lyle Menendez Married Twice While In Prison
His First Marriage Lasted 5 Years
In a small wedding ceremony attended by Abramson and his aunt Marta Menendez, Lyle Menendez married Anna Eriksson in July 1996. However, almost five years later, Eriksson filed for divorce when she learned that Lyle was cheating on her with someone else. A little over two years after the divorce, Lyle Menendez married Rebecca Sneed. Their wedding ceremony was held in Mule Creek State Prison’s visiting area.
1Erik Menendez’s Wife Wrote A Book About Her Relationship With Him
The Book Is TitledThey Said We’d Never Make It – My Life with Erik Menéndez
Erik Menendez married Tammi Ruth Saccoman in Folsom State Prison’s waiting room. Although Saccoman’s family was not okay with her relationship with Wrik Menendez, she described it (viaABC News) assomething she had dreamed of for a long time. Discussing the struggles of her relationship with Erik Menendez, she even self-published a book,They Said We’d Never Make It – My Life with Erik Menéndez, in 2005. ConsideringMonsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story’s limited runtime, it makes sense that it glosses over some details surrounding the Menendez brothers' true story.
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story
This true crime drama delves into the infamous case of Lyle and Erik Menendez, two brothers who were convicted of murdering their parents. The series examines the complex family dynamics and legal battles that captivated the nation, highlighting the motivations and repercussions of their actions.
