Everything controversial Netflix show Monsters got wrong about Menendez murders

The latest Netflix TV show showing the Menendez murders has captured people’s attention, but don’t take all of the scenes as fact, as allegedly, there was a lot that the show got wrong.

After viewers watched the latest instalment of the Monsters franchise, viewers of The Lyle and Erik Menendez story are confused about what really happened in 1989 when Jose and Kitty Menendez were murdered and their sons charged with their murders.

While a lot of the show correctly depicted a lot of what is said to have occurred, such as molestation allegations between Erik, Lyle and Jose, there is much that wasn’t true at all.

Let’s take a look.

The Monsters show depicted a lot of false scenes. (Netflix)

Erik and Lyle’s incestuous relationship

This scene was probably something that riles fans up the most.

In the show, Erik and Lyle’s incestuous relationship was heavily implied and shown through a scene with the pair kissing and then showering together.

However, there is nothing that came out which would suggest that these events happened.

Journalist and researcher Robert Rand wrote a 2018 book The Menendez Murders and claimed that the suggestion that the brothers had a sexual relationship was false.

Even though others have speculated that it was in fact true.

“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 José had done with him,” Rand told The Hollywood Reporter.

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

According to Murphy, he was simply showing different theories that people have had about the case, claiming: “Dominick Dunne wrote several articles talking about [the incest] theory. We are presenting his point of view, just as we present Leslie Abramson’s point of view. And we had an obligation to show all of that, and we did.”

Erik Menendez confessed the crimes to his therapist (Netflix)

The brothers were held in the same prison when they first got arrested

This is a little nit-picky, but the scene where Erik and Lyle were sat in adjacent cells next to each other after being arrested for their parent’s murder didn’t happen in real life.

That’s because they were actually held in different prisons after their arrest.

Erik’s confession to the therapist

In the show, Erik confessed to his therapist, Dr Jerome Oziel, early on before being approached by a friend who was wired up.

In the show's timeline of events, the police later wiretap a friend, Craig Cignarelli to get him to coax a confession, but in real life it wasn’t the same.

In fact, Erik's confession with Oziel happened after the police asked Cignarelli to get a confession out of him.

The therapist initially promised the brothers that he was bound by his patient confidentiality and could not inform the police.

But there was a catch, it was only applicable if he could record their sessions.

However, he went on to tell his patient and mistress Judalon Smyth of the confession who then contacted police when the pair broke up.