Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story creator, co-writer and director Ian Brennan opened up about the latest real-life developments of the Menendez brothers’ resentencing hearing on the red carpet at the Golden Globes on Sunday.
“The things that will be reexamined when their sentencing is looked at is not stuff we uncovered.” Brennan said. “That’s been in the public eye for years now. It just shows the power of what a television show can do to shine a light on things.”
Related Stories
Netflix’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story takes a dive into the historic 1989 case, in which, Jose and Kitty Menendez (Javier Bardem and Chloë Sevigny), were gunned down in their homes by their two sons (Cooper Koch and Nicholas Alexander Chavez). The case took the world by storm and kickstarted audiences’ modern-day fascinations with true crime stories.
Erik and Lyle Menendez will have to wait until Jan. 30 to wait for a decision on whether they will have the possibility of freedom from prison more than 30 years after killing their parents. Prosecutors have argued that the brothers killed their parents for financial gain, while the pair made the counterargument that they acted out of self-defense following years of emotional and sexual abuse by their father.
Watch on Deadline
Since the show’s release, the Los Angeles County prosecutors have suggested a reevaluation hearing stating that they had demonstrated good behavior in person. There has also been support from remaining family members and new evidence submitted that allege support for the Menendez’s initial claims.
“I think those particular two pieces of evidence really deserve their day in court. I’m happy to see that the legal system is giving them another shot because I think there’s a good possibility that they’ve served the amount of time they should,” Brennan said.
In regards to whether or not Brennan has been contacted by the brothers’ legal teams since the series release, he says he has not heard from anyone. “I don’t even know what the truth is. Only they do. But I know that they do deserve another [chance] because they could very well have been inappropriately sentenced. It has occurred to me a million times. What do they think of it? Have they seen it? Did they like it? Because you just try your best. We can’t get inside their heads. And I think that writing in particular is a real job of empathy. It’s trying to be as empathetic as you possibly can. Trying to put your head in someone else’s. I’d love to chat with them about it.”