Netflix Menendez Doc Director Says Brothers Wouldn't Discuss Possibility of Freedom: 'No False Expectations' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Erik and Lyle Menendez in front of their Beverly Hills home in 1989.Photo:Los Angeles Times via Getty

Los Angeles Times via Getty

Their murder case is one of the most infamous in U.S. history, soLyleandErik Menendezhad much to discuss.

Over the course of five months starting in 2022, Lyle, 56, and Erik, 53, spent more than 20 hours opening up to director Alejandro Hartmann for the new Netflix documentary,The Menendez Brothers,streaming Oct. 7.

In a series of recorded phone conversations from California’s Donovan Correctional Facility, where they are both incarcerated, the brothers spoke to Hartmann about everything — from growing up in Beverly Hills with a hard-driving father who they accuse of sexually abusing them to how horrified they say they felt after gunning down their parents in 1989.

One topic neither brother wanted to discuss was the possibility of a retrial.

“Erik didn’t want to talk about that because he doesn’t want to have false expectations,” says Hartmann.

Convicted of first-degree murder in 1996 after a 1993 mistrial, the brothers were sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Over the years, they’ve tried to appeal their convictions without success.

Though they’re in prison, the brothers have been in the news lately because of the Ryan Murphy-directed true crime drama,Monsters,also streaming on Netflix.

On Thursday, Oct. 3, L.A. County District Attorney George Gascon held a press conferenceannouncing that his office is reviewing possible new evidenceof the sexual abuse the brothers allege and that their sentencing could be re-evaluated.

At first, Erik didn’t want to participate in the documentary, but Lyle, who hasn’t spoken publicly since he and Eric sat down with Barbara Walters for a televised interview in June 1996, agreed to talk to him.

“I think he liked that I wasn’t American,” says Hartmann, who is Argentinian. “He thought that I wasn’t to be so biased.

He adds: “I think that maybe after 30 years of not talking, it was maybe time."

Their conversations began in April 2022 “like a chat,” says Hartmann, who has directed other Netflix documentaries, includingThe Photographer: Murder in Pinamar, in 2022.

“We began talking about life. The World Cup was coming. Lyle really likes soccer. So do I. We began talking more and more and it became an interview, eventually,” he says.

Months into their talks, Lyle told Erik he should talk to Hartmann, who had gained Lyle’s trust. “Eventually Erik said yes,” says Hartmann, who began talking to him in November 2022.

Brothers Have Different Personalities: Director

Like many siblings, the brothers have distinct personalities, he says. “Lyle was raised to be the golden boy, the successor of his father,” says Hartmann. “Erik was much more shy, more linked to the mother.”

“Sometimes you feel Lyle is trying to be in control of the situation,” he says. “Erik was more open to talk directly about things.”

Both, he says, “are very deep thinking people. Very intelligent, I enjoyed talking to them. Even though we went through very hard parts of stories they told me, I enjoyed talking with them.”

These days, Lyle keeps busy with projects to improve the lives of prisoners, including starting a program to bring cats and dogs to the prison.

“Lyle really likes to work with other people,” he says. “Erik is more focused on his own spirituality. He meditates. He discovered art.”

He believes the both regret killing their parents.

“I think that probably every day they think about what happened,” he says.

The Menendez Brothersairs on Netflix on Oct. 7.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.

source: people.com