Lyle and Erik Menendez Trial Expert Says Incest Storyline in Ryan Murphy'sMonstersSeries Is 'a Fantasy'

Mar. 15, 2025

Erik Menendez, left, and his brother Lyle Menendez.Photo:Los Angeles Times via Getty

Los Angeles Times via Getty

In an interview withThe Hollywood Reporterfollowing the Sept. 19 release of the newest ofRyan Murphy’sMonstersseries, Robert Rand set the record straight on the differences between the show and reality. As the author of 2018’sThe Menendez Murdersbook, Rand said there were several falsities in the show.

“Rumors were going around the trial that maybe there was some sort of weird relationship between Erik and Lyle themselves, but I believe the only physical contact they might have had is what Lyle testified, that when Lyle was 8 years old, he took Erik out in the woods and played with him with a toothbrush — which is what [their father] José had done with him,” he continued.

He added: “I certainly wouldn’t call that a sexual relationship of any sort. It’s a response to trauma.”

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

Erik Menendez (L) and his brother Lyle.VINCE BUCCI/AFP via Getty

VINCE BUCCI/AFP via Getty

In the nine-episode limited series, episode 2 shows Erik and Lyle sharing a kiss, while episode 6 features their mother finding them showering together. The brothers had testified in their trial that they never had a sexual relationship with one another.

Erik released astatementslamming the series after it premiered, which was also posted on Lyle’ssocial media.

“I believed we had moved beyond the lies and ruinous character portrayals of Lyle, creating a caricature of Lyle rooted in horrible and blatant [lies] rampant in the show,” it read. “I can only believe they were done so on purpose. 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.”

“Is the truth not enough? Let the truth stand as the truth,” he concluded. “How demoralizing is it to know that one man with power can undermine decades of progress in shedding light on childhood trauma.”

Erik Menendez with his attorney Leslie Abramson and his brother Lyle Menendez during the trial of the Menendez brothers in Los Angeles on March 9, 1994.Ted Soqui/Sygma/Getty

Ted Soqui/Sygma/Getty

Lyle and Erik, then 21 and 18,killed their parents, José and Kitty Menendez, with 12-gauge shotguns at their Beverly Hills home in 1989, claiming self-defense. They were later prosecuted and accused of doing it for their family’s over $14 million fortune, but the brothers have maintained that it was due to mental, physical and sexual abuse that had been occurring.

“I’m not saying what I did was rightor justifiable. I needed to go to prison. But place another child in my life and see what happens,” Erik told PEOPLE in 2005. “I felt it was either my life or my parents’ life. … Being arrested was such a relief. My life was over and I was glad. I didn’t want the money.”

Though many have criticized the series for its false portrayals, others have defended the project, including thebrother of Cooper Koch, who plays Erik in the series.

From left: Brad Culver as Gerald Chaleff, Nicholas Chavez as Lyle Menendez, Cooper Koch as Erik Menendez in ‘Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story’.Miles Crist/Netflix

Miles Crist/Netflix

“I won’t speak for Cooper but I will say that he cares immensely for the boys and stands with them and all victims of abuse,” Payton wrote on Instagram on Sept. 20. “He did everything he could to ensure their stories of abuse were seen on screen and I think in episode 5, it is abundantly clear where he stands.”

Payton, who is a film editor who has worked onOnly Murders in the Building, added that actors are “only vessels for the writers/producers of the show. Any true story portrayal is going to be tough, but please trust me when I say he does care about them and their story ❤️‍🩹.”

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Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyis now streaming on Netflix.

source: people.com