Ryan Murphy Responds to Criticism of 'Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story' (Exclusive)
Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Erik MenendezThe cast of 's speaks out about the controversial Netflix series.
Following Eric MenendezCriticism of the Ryan Murphy drama—which tells the story of Erik and his brother Lyle MenendezThe conviction for the murder of his parents in 1989, Jose Menendez and Maria Luisa “Kitty” Menendez—The stars of the show weighed in, including Cooper Kochwho played Erik in the project. And as the actor noted, Erik's negative reaction “definitely affected me and made me feel things.”
“I sympathize with him, I empathize with him,” Cooper continued in an interview with Variety published on September 25. “I understand. I understand how difficult it would be to have the worst part of your life televised for millions of people to see. It’s very revealing. I understand how he feels and I support him.”
Ultimately, the 28-year-old hoped to create a nuanced portrayal of the younger Menendez brother.
“I really wanted to do as much research as I could and dig deep within myself so I could portray him with integrity,” he added, “and be as authentic as possible to support him and also to support his family and all the people who support him.”