The premiere of Menendez Brothers: Misjudged? will kick off ID’s month-long nostalgic dive into some of the most shocking cases of the 1990s, with specials airing every Sunday in August at 9/8c on ID.
Erik and Lyle Menendez’s brutal double murder of their parents gripped news stations across the country. What seemingly began as a case of two privileged boys motivated to murder by greed quickly developed into something much more shocking: the Menendez brothers testified to a lifetime of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse at the hands of the parents they killed.
While the brothers continue to serve their life sentences behind bars, their case has transfixed a new generation of savvy media consumers, who harnessed the story on TikTok. Menendez Brothers: Misjudged? revisits the case that still, decades later, baffles and captivates the public. It offers an exclusive interview with Lyle Menendez and a fascinating look at the evidence, the trial, the media, and the public’s reaction both then and now.
The two-hour documentary special will premiere on August 7 at 9/8c on ID. It also streams the same day on discovery+.
TikTok and the Menendez Brothers Case
While the Menendez Brothers case never truly left the public consciousness, over the past year their 1990 trial has captivated TikTok. Posts about the brothers have garnered close to one billion views.
As popular culture begins to reflect on how the previous generations may have treated public figures and sensitive topics like sexual abuse and trauma, the Menendez brothers’ trial and evisceration by the media —and the public— is coming back into focus.
With the incredible reach of social media platforms, Gen Z influencers are uncovering new evidence and pushing for a second look at the trial and how the brothers were sentenced.
Menendez Brothers: Misjudged? features new insight around the case combined with gripping interviews with Erik and Lyle’s post-conviction attorney, media, legal experts, investigators, and the TikTokers who brought the case back into the spotlight. The documentary presents a comprehensive look at a crime that still perplexes and divides the public.
“The TikTok fascination with the Menendez Brothers is not only a fascinating example of how certain cases never really leave our public consciousness, but also an interesting look at the way different generations grapple with conversations around abuse, masculinity, and violence,” said Jason Sarlanis, President of Crime and Investigative Content, Linear and Streaming. “At a time when popular culture is having fresh conversations around how we as a public approach difficult topics, Menendez Brothers: Misjudged? reconsiders this trial and the way it played out in the media. Only on ID will you hear from Lyle Menendez himself, and maybe see a different perspective that was missed in the original news coverage. This thought-provoking film is a powerful way to kick off our nostalgic month-long look back at the cases of the 1990s that shocked us then and still impact our culture today.”
For More Info
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Check-In
Were you aware this case was so divisive?
I remember it being shocking and sensational, but I didn’t know it still captivated, baffled, or divided people.
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
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I did know the case was so divisive. I think, though, when people have the most information they can (not just one interview from one lawyer), that the divide isn’t so big.
That’s a great point! Information does tend to narrow gaps. I had no idea it was even an issue in this case, and not sure it will help the brothers all that much, but maybe it will? Guess we’ll see.. THANKS as always for the comment/insights.
The sexual abuse, how their using it and it not being documented anywhere before hand is where the lying lies. As it is being used in a way that if both of the Parents, one doing the act and the other letting it happen would suggest there would be no one else to confirm the act !
Being in it that each Parent would deny the act keeping them both protected by their denial and if at a point the brothers bring it up to anyone it would be their word against the Parents and who’s word would be believed ! So as it would go the brothers would need to kill both of them and rest on the belief that what would be believed is the Parents would not of told anyone else about what they were doing to their own children ! The brothers can’t prove they were abused and the Parents couldn’t prove they didn’t abuse them which if being accused they wouldn’t have to, the brothers would have to prove they did or do what their doing and get you to believe they got killed by what they did without being able to defend themselves as to the brothers actions are the proof and Greed had nothing to do with it by keeping the word Greed from coming up at all
and at a highest priority to do just that.
You bring up some great points, Willard. And also demonstrated how legal issues are truly circular, not linear. I don’t know if you meant to do that, but you did it brilliantly!