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Ryan Murphy believes Netflix‘sMonsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story may have played a role in reaching a “move towards justice” in the brothers’ case. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, the series director reacted to Thursday’s announcement that the case was being reevaluated.
“When we were making it, Nicholas [Chavez] and Cooper [Koch]’s performances were so empathetic that I did think they were going to change hearts and minds,” he told THR. “When you see episode four and five [which detail the abuse the brothers claim their parents inflicted], I think we’re giving the Menendez brothers a platform to talk about their point of view of what they claim happened to them.”
“[Those episodes] are probably one of the things that has led to an understanding of this case and a move towards justice,” he added.
Kim Kardashian also turned to social media Friday and called for the brothers to be “freed”:
Upon its release, the Menendez familycriticized Murphy and the show, saying that it was being “victimized” by the “grotesque shockdrama,” calling it “a phobic, gross, anachronistic, serial episodic nightmare that is not only riddled with mistruths and outright falsehoods.”
Murphy has defended the series, saying it presented “many, many perspectives” and theories “based on people who were either involved or cover the case.” (To THR, he said: “I find it ironic that their family condemned it so vociferously and with so much anger.”)
TheMenendez brotherswere convicted of murder in the Nineties in atrial that made headlines for months,both for the stakes of the Menendez family’s money and the violent nature of the murders. To THR, Murphy added that he believed certain things “should have been entered into evidence” in the brothers’ second trial.
“If you look at the breakdown of what the jury did, they had no interest in the sexual abuse or even an understanding it,” Murphy said. “I knew when we were making it that it would outrage some people like Rosie O’Donnell and the Menendez family, but I also thought it would make a lot of people feel empathy and compassion [for] them.”
Murphy also said he “100 percent” supported Kim Kardashian visiting the prison where the Menendez brothers are being held in her effort to advocate for prison reform.
“People have been working tirelessly on behalf of these brothers for a very long time —people who believe that the sexual abuse angle should have been examined more thoroughly. Some of it has just come to light should be reexamined,” Murphy told THR. “But the timing of this announcement and Kim, I do think about the power of television to a large degree.”
“There’s something very powerful about watching these true-life stories. I’ve seen that time and time again with my career,” he added.
On Thursday,Los Angeles District Attorney Javier Gascon announcedthe DA’s Office would review new information in the decades-old case.
“We’re not at this point ready to say we believe or do not believe that information,” Gascón said, per theLA Times.“But we’re here to tell you that we have a moral and ethical obligation to review what is being presented to us and make a determination.”
