Summary
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Storyhas been a huge hit onNetflixsince it was released last month, with 30 million views in total, and featuring in the top 10 on Netflix’s charts in 89 countries. Ryan Murphy’s drama series has sparked controversy with its depiction of the case, with the Menendez brothers themselves hitting back at some of the claims made in the series. It was a complicated case, andto truly understand the backdrop to what was really going on requires a rewatch of Ryan Murphy’s FX series,American Crime Story: The People Vs O. J Simpson.
Los Angeles was literally on fire in the 90s with the beating of Rodney King leading to the riots of 1992. The unrest continued to grow after O. J Simpson was acquitted in his murder trial, and all of this affected the Menendez case greatly.The Menendez Brothersdocumentary which landed on Netflix on October 7 delved deeper into the O. J Simpson connection, but Murphy’s 2016 FX drama is very much a companion piece to his most recent drama, and it helps to get a full picture of what was really going on during that turbulent time.
American Crime Story: The People Vs O. J Simpson
Starring
Sarah Paulson, Sterling K. Brown, Cuba Gooding Jnr, Bruce Greenwood, David Schwimmer, Courtney B. Vance, John Travolta, Kenneth Choi, Christian Clemenson, Nathan Lane, Billy Magnussen, Chris Bauer and Selma Blair
Written by
Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski
Created by
Ryan Murphy
After the Menendez brothers' separate trials resulted in hung juries, their joint trial was set for 1995, but there was a shocking double murder which re-ignited the racial divide in Los Angeles, and pivoted the media’s focus away from the upcoming Menendez trial. American NFL player,O. J Simpsonmurdered his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ron Goldman on June 25, 2025, and this was portrayed in theRyan Murphydrama series,American Crime Story: The People vs O. J Simpson.The Menendez retrial was set to begin in October 1995, and this coincided with the end of the Simpson case. O. J Simpson was acquitted, and this was widely considered to be a major gut punch to the Menendez case.
If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit
There is a lot of politics involved in the DA’s office, and Gil Garcetti was reeling after the Simpson loss, and needed a high-profile victory, and the Menendez brothers' case provided them with the perfect opportunity.A hung jury ended up being transformed into a resounding jury vote to convict, so what changed? O. J SImpson is the simple answer. Just like the Rodney King beating was responsible for O. J Simpson’s acquittal, in turn,Simpson’s circus trialand ultimate acquittal led to the Menendez brothers' conviction. It’s all a ripple effect, but that’s not to say the Menendez brothers didn’t deserve what they got: they killed their parents in the most brutal fashion, but they were definitely treated more harshly because of what was happening in Los Angeles around that time.
Key Timeline
O. J Simpson Key Facts
The Menendez brothers had been languishing in jail for over four years when Simpson rocked up after being arrested for the double murder of his wife, Nicole Simpson Brown, and her friend, Ron Goldman.Erik Menendez has been outspoken about how he thinks the Simpson case affected the verdict in their trial, and he’s not alone in this. The brothers are seeking a retrial, and they might just get it due to the publicity surrounding their case. O. J Simpson died in April 2024 at the age of 76.
