Menendez brother, who gunned down parents, slams new show for 'dishonest portrayal'

Erik Menendez, one of the two Menendez brothers who gunned down their parents inside their Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, mansion in 1989, is condemning what he describes as a "dishonest portrayal" of their story in a new show.

Joseph Menendez, who goes by his middle name Lyle, and his brother, Erik, shot their parents, Jose and Mary "Kitty" Menendez. They were both convicted in the murders and ordered to serve life in prison in 1996, but they have recently been seeking reduced sentences.

"I believed we had moved beyond the lies and ruinous character portrayals of Lyle, creating a caricature of Lyle rooted in horrible and blatant lies rampant in the show. I can only believe they were done so on purpose. It is with a heavy heart that I say, I believe Ryan Murphy cannot be this naive and inaccurate about the facts of our lives so as to do this without bad intent," Erik said in a statement that his wife, Tammi Menendez, posted to X. 

The show, "Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story," premiered on Netflix last week.

THE MENENDEZ BROTHERS: MONSTERS OR MISUNDERSTOOD?

Erik and Lyle Menendez listen during their trial in the 1990s. (Ted Soqui/Sygma)

"Monsters" is advertised as a "true-crime drama probes the lives of the Menendez brothers, convicted of the brutal 1989 murders of their parents in Beverly Hills."

But at least one brother does not appear to be happy with the final product.

LYLE MENENDEZ, WHO SHOTGUNNED PARENTS TO DEATH WITH BROTHER, PLANS FOR LIFE AFTER PRISON AMID NEW APPEAL

The Menendez brothers — Erik, left, and Lyle — on the steps of their Beverly Hills home in November 1989.  (Ronald L. Soble/Los Angeles Times)

"It is sad for me to know that Netflix’s dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crime have taken the painful truths several steps backward — back through time to an era when the prosecution built a narrative on a belief system that males were not sexually abused, and that males experienced rape trauma differently than women," Erik said in his statement shared by Tammi. 

"Those awful lies have been disputed and exposed by countless brave victims over the last two decades who have broken through their personal shame and bravely spoken out. So now Murphy shapes his horrible narrative through vile and appalling character portrayals of Lyle and of me and disheartening slander."

WATCH: MENENDEZ BROTHERS' ATTORNEY ALLEGES NEW FACTS

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Erik further demanded to "[l]et the truth stand as the truth."

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"How demoralizing to know that one man with power can undermine decades of progress in shedding light on childhood trauma," he continued in the statement. "Violence is never an answer, never a solution, and is always tragic. As such, I hope it is never forgotten that violence against a child creates a hundred horrendous and silent crime scenes darkly shadowed behind glitter and glamor and rarely exposed until tragedy penetrates everyone involved. To all those who have reached out and supported me, thank you from the bottom of my heart."

An undated photo of the Menendez family as it appears on screen during a panel at CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee, on Sunday, June 2. The brothers Lyle and Erik were convicted of fatally shooting both of their parents in 1989.  (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)

The brothers' attorneys have argued they should have been convicted of manslaughter rather than murder, in which case they already would have been released from prison.

A separate documentary about the brothers titled "The Menendez Brothers" is scheduled to premiere on Oct. 7. The film promises to "offer another perspective — that of the brothers themselves, provided in all-new audio interviews," according to a press release. The will also detail the brothers' allegations that their father sexually assaulted them.

Fox News' Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.