Javier Bardem has landed a monster(s) role…
The 54-year-old Spanish Oscar-winning actor will star in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, the second season of the acclaimed Netflix crime anthology Monster from creators Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan.
Bardem will star alongside Chloë Sevigny, Nicholas Chavez and Cooper Koch in the series.
Bardem abd Sevigny will respectively play Jose and Kitty Menendez, the Beverly Hills couple murdered by sons Lyle (Chavez) and Erik (Koch).
The new season comes on the heels of Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, which starred Evan Peters as the notorious serial killer and quickly became one of Netflix’s most popular English-language series ever when it debuted in September 2022.
It was in 1989 that Lyle and Erik Menendez murdered parents Jose and Kitty in their L.A.-area home. Although not initially looked at as prime suspects, they came under investigation in the months following and eventually confessed to parricide, at the same time claiming that their actions stemmed from years of physical, emotional and sexual abuse at the hands of their father. Their first of two trials, broadcast on Court TV, had the nation in its grip, much like the 1994 trial of O.J. Simpson, and is believed to have played a part in the modern-day fascination with true crime.
The prosecution argued that the pair were in fact seeking to inherit their father’s multimillion-dollar estate, and the Menendez brothers were convicted in 1996 and sentenced to life imprisonment, without the possibility of parole, though the case continues to unfold to this day. Last summer, Erik and Lyle filed documents in hopes of a new hearing, following former Menudo bandmember Roy Rosselló’s claim that he was molested by José Menendez at the age of 14.
Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story is one of two forthcoming seasons of the Monster anthology announced as of November 2022. The story at the center of the third chapter has not yet been revealed. In addition to the scripted series on the Menendez brothers, Netflix has a feature doc on the duo in the works, brought to life with exclusive access to the subjects.
Most recently portraying King Triton in Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Bardem will next be seen in Dune: Part Two, out March 1 following a strike-imposed delay, and Apple’s Formula 1 racing movie with Brad Pitt.