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Erik Menéndez criticizes Ryan Murphy's new “Monsters” series

Erik Menéndez talks about a new series based on his life.

On Friday, September 20, Erik – one of the protagonists of Netflix' Monster: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menéndez – posted a statement on his brother Lyle Menéndez’s Facebook page sharply criticizing Ryan Murphy’s latest show.

Erik, 53, criticized the portrayal of himself and 56-year-old Lyle, who claim to have been abused by their parents and murdered them in self-defense. He reflected on the trauma and violence they experienced in their childhood and claimed the show did not portray this accurately.

“I thought we had moved beyond the lies and devastating character portrayals of Lyle and created a caricature of Lyle based on horrific and blatant lies that were rampant on the show,” Erik began. “I can only believe this was done on purpose. It is with a heavy heart that I must say that I believe Ryan Murphy cannot be so naive and inaccurate about the facts of our lives to do this without malicious intent.”

He continued, “It saddens me to know that Netflix's dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crime pushes painful truths back several steps – back to an era when prosecutors built their narrative on a belief system that said men were not sexually assaulted and that men experienced rape trauma differently than women.”

Lyle Menendez, second from left, and his brother Erik, second from right, in 1990.

AP Photo/Nick Ut


Erik further claimed that Murphy, 58, “frames his horrific story through vile and horrific character portrayals of Lyle and me and disheartening slanders.”

“Is the truth not enough? Then the truth must be the truth,” he added. “How demoralizing it is to know that one man with power can undo decades of progress in the investigation of childhood trauma.”

Erik concluded his statement by thanking everyone who “reached out to him and supported him.”

Representatives for Murphy and Netflix did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

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Monster: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menéndez follows Erik and Lyle and the murder of their parents José and Mary Louse “Kitty” Menéndez in August 1989 and the subsequent trial in the early 1990s.

After murdering their parents in their home, Lyle sobbed and called 911, claiming they had gone to a movie and returned home to find their parents dead. The brothers were not arrested for the murders until months later.

Erik and Lyle were both ultimately found guilty of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder. They were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole and are currently serving their sentences at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in San Diego.

Nicholas Chavez as Lyle Menendez and Cooper Koch as Erik Menendez.

Miles Crist/Netflix


Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Cooper Koch play Lyle and Erik in the miniseries. The cast is rounded out by Javier Bardem and Chloë Sevigny as their parents.

Monster: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menendez is now available to stream on Netflix.