Netflix Unleashes Its First Female “Monster”: The Haunting True Story of Lizzie Borden Returns in a Ruthlessly Twisted New Chapter — After “The Ed Gein Story” Breaks Records, Ryan Murphy’s Anthology Takes a Blood-Soaked Leap Into Feminine Rage, Victorian Secrets, and the Axe Murder That Changed America Forever
Netflix Unleashes Its First Female “Monster”: The Haunting True Story of Lizzie Borden Returns in a Ruthlessly Twisted New Chapter — After “The Ed Gein Story” Breaks Records, Ryan Murphy’s Anthology Takes a Blood-Soaked Leap Into Feminine Rage, Victorian Secrets, and the Axe Murder That Changed America Forever
If you thought Monster: The Ed Gein Story was disturbing, brace yourself.
Netflix has confirmed that the fourth installment in Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s acclaimed true-crime anthology — the same universe that gave us The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and The Menendez Murders — will center on America’s most infamous woman accused of murder: Lizzie Borden.
Following the staggering global success of The Ed Gein Story — which shot to #1 in 62 countries within 48 hours of release — the streamer wasted no time in greenlighting its next descent into the abyss. This time, however, the monster isn’t lurking in a Wisconsin farmhouse or behind suburban smiles.
She’s a well-bred woman in a corseted dress, holding an axe — and smiling.
The Monster Universe Expands — and This Time, the Killer Wears Pearls
Tentatively titled “Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story,” the new season dives headlong into one of the most haunting unsolved crimes in American history. On a sweltering August morning in 1892, Lizzie Borden’s father and stepmother were found bludgeoned to death in their Fall River, Massachusetts home — each struck multiple times with a hatchet.
Lizzie, a 32-year-old spinster and church volunteer, was the prime suspect. Her calm demeanor, inconsistent alibis, and shocking lack of remorse made her a national obsession. Though she was ultimately acquitted of the murders, the verdict didn’t save her reputation — only sealed her place in American mythology.
Now, more than 130 years later, Ryan Murphy is resurrecting the case in his signature style: gorgeously shot, psychologically intense, and morally ambiguous.
A source close to production teased:
“This isn’t just a period drama — it’s a gothic nightmare wearing a lace collar. It’s about patriarchy, repression, madness, and the terrifying question: what happens when the perfect Victorian daughter finally snaps?”
From Dahmer to Borden: Ryan Murphy’s Shift from Male Monsters to Female Fury
The Monster anthology has always thrived on moral unease — turning notorious killers into complex human studies while forcing viewers to confront their fascination with evil.
But with Lizzie Borden, Murphy and co-creator Ian Brennan are venturing into new, chilling territory: the birth of the female monster.
After three seasons exploring toxic masculinity and the myth of male violence, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story promises a radical inversion — a slow, claustrophobic exploration of female rage in a world built to suppress it.
As Murphy reportedly told his team:
“Lizzie isn’t a monster because she killed. She’s a monster because she was never allowed to be anything else.”
This shift positions Season 4 as not just another crime retelling, but a bold feminist statement — blending gothic horror, courtroom drama, and psychological dissection in equal measure.
Ella Beatty Takes the Axe: A Star Is (Terrifyingly) Born
Stepping into the bloodstained shoes of Lizzie Borden is Ella Beatty, the rising star who stunned audiences in Feud: Capote vs. The Swans. The daughter of Warren Beatty and Annette Bening, Ella brings both Hollywood pedigree and eerie restraint to the role.
Producers describe her performance as “mesmerizing and deeply unsettling,” capturing Lizzie’s duality — part fragile socialite, part silent fury.
Beatty reunites with Murphy in a breakout role that could define her career, joined by a powerhouse ensemble:
- Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread, Corsage) as Bridget Sullivan, the Bordens’ live-in maid and reluctant witness to horror.
- Rebecca Hall (Passing, Christine) as Abby Borden, Lizzie’s cold, domineering stepmother.
- Billie Lourd (American Horror Story) as Lizzie’s estranged sister Emma.
- Jessica Barden (The End of the F**ing World*) as Nance O’Neill, Lizzie’s rumored lover and actress friend, whose presence scandalized polite society.
The casting signals a shift from the grotesque brutality of Ed Gein to something more psychological — a chamber piece about secrets, class, and the suffocating expectations of womanhood.
A Killer in a Corset: Revisiting the Crime That Obsessed a Nation
The Lizzie Borden case has been retold countless times — through poems, plays, and films. (“Lizzie Borden took an axe / And gave her mother forty whacks…” The nursery rhyme remains bone-chilling even now.)
But Murphy’s adaptation promises to peel back the myth and reveal the woman beneath it — drawing from contemporary accounts, trial transcripts, and Borden’s own haunting letters.
Filming began earlier this year in Massachusetts and New Orleans, under the direction of Max Winkler (Monster: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story). The series will reportedly blend meticulous period detail with surreal dream sequences — a visual language inspired by The Others and Crimson Peak.
Expect opulent gowns, candlelit corridors, and slow, dread-filled pacing that turns every creak of a floorboard into a threat.
Critical Aftershock: Why the “Monster” Universe Keeps Winning
When Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story premiered in 2022, it became one of Netflix’s biggest-ever debuts — earning over 1 billion viewing hours and catapulting Evan Peters to Emmy-winning acclaim.
Then came The Menendez Story and The Ed Gein Story, each one testing how far audiences were willing to stare into the darkness.
Now, The Lizzie Borden Story could be Murphy’s riskiest experiment yet — a story without clear villains, where guilt, repression, and desire blur into something uncomfortably human.
Film historian and true-crime scholar Dr. Amanda Reeves notes:
“Lizzie Borden isn’t Dahmer. She’s not a serial killer, she’s a cultural mirror. Every generation projects something new onto her — hysteria, injustice, vengeance. That’s what makes her terrifying: she’s whatever the times need her to be.”
Production Secrets and Netflix’s Gamble
Netflix has yet to announce a release date, but production is reportedly in full swing, with a late 2025 or early 2026 debut expected.
Insiders say the creative team is pouring enormous resources into authenticity — from the hand-sewn Victorian costumes to the recreation of the infamous Borden house. One crew member teased, “There’s an entire episode told from the point of view of the maid — like The Handmaid’s Tale meets The Haunting of Hill House.”
If true, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story might mark a creative evolution for Murphy’s empire — a blend of prestige horror, historical drama, and feminist allegory.
The Legacy of a Legend
Lizzie Borden died in 1927, shunned and alone. Her house — now a bed-and-breakfast — remains one of America’s most visited haunted sites.
But with Netflix’s next Monster, her ghost will find a new home — in millions of living rooms worldwide.
Whether she’s portrayed as a victim, a killer, or something in between, one thing’s certain: Lizzie Borden is about to claim her place among the monsters.
And this time, the monster has a motive.
“Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story” — Coming Soon to Netflix
“Behind every good daughter is a story no one believed.”
Prepare for lace, blood, and lies — Ryan Murphy-style.