Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story Release Date, Cast, and the True Story Behind Netflix’s New Series

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story takes a look back at a murder case wherein the acquittal did little to assuage the public’s suspicions. It has been more than a century since Lizzie Borden was tried and found not guilty of the murder of her father and stepmother. And yet, her name remains inseparable from the crime. Now, Netflix is exploring her story in the latest chapter of true-crime anthology series Monster.

The last season, Monster: The Ed Gein Story was set in the mid-20th century, but this is the first time we are exploring a case in the 19th century. A woman being at the center of the story is also a series first. Created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story follows repression, desire, and violence within a wealthy Victorian household. Here’s everything to know about its release date, cast, historical inspiration, and trailer.

When Will Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story Premiere on Netflix?

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story premieres on Netflix on September 17, 2026. As is usual with the streamer, every episode (8 in total) will be available to stream. So, you can enjoy (if that word is applicable here) the entire story without waiting for weekly episodes. 

In the United States, Netflix’s Standard with ads plan costs $8.99 per month, offering Full HD streaming on two devices simultaneously. The Standard plan costs $19.99 per month and removes ads from movies and shows while retaining the same resolution and simultaneous viewing limit.

The Premium plan costs $26.99 per month and supports viewing on four devices at once. Advanced features like 4K and HDR are available for compatible titles and devices in the Premium plan. 

In case you didn’t know, each season of Monster follows a different case, so viewers can start with Lizzie Borden without watching the earlier seasons. Returning actors play different characters, with the anthology format allowing familiar faces to take on new roles.

The move to nineteenth-century Massachusetts also gives the series a different environment to explore. A family home can become a particularly effective setting for horror when the people living there have little power to leave or challenge those in charge. Here, the respectable appearance of a prosperous household offers an unsettling backdrop for the story’s violence.

Who Is in the Cast of Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story?

Ella Beatty leads the series as the woman at the center of the notorious murder case. Her previous screen credits include Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, and If I Had Legs I’d Kick You. Charlie Hunnam, who played Ed Gein in the previous season, returns to the anthology as Andrew Borden, Lizzie’s father.

Rebecca Hall plays Abby Borden, Lizzie’s stepmother, while Billie Lourd portrays her older sister, Emma. Vicky Krieps takes on the role of Bridget “Maggie” Sullivan, the family’s live-in maid. Jessica Barden appears as Nance O’Neil, an actor and friend of Lizzie’s. These roles are confirmed in Netflix’s cast announcement. Joey Pollari also plays Lizzie’s uncle, John Morse.

Krieps’s Maggie is especially important to the adaptation. Netflix’s preview presents an intimate relationship between Maggie and Lizzie, with the maid encouraging Lizzie’s anger toward her parents. Their connection places desire and rebellion at the center of the drama, although this relationship belongs to the show’s fictionalized interpretation rather than an established account of the murders.

Sarah Paulson also joins the cast as serial killer Aileen Wuornos, taking the season beyond the Borden household and into a much later period. Beatty has explained that Murphy and Brennan wanted to explore connections between the women through female rage and the circumstances surrounding it.

The challenge will be giving these very different women their own identities. A shared theme can create an interesting conversation across periods, but it becomes less useful if it smooths away everything that makes each case distinct.

What Is the True Story Behind the Lizzie Borden Murders?

On August 4, 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden were killed in their home in Fall River, Massachusetts. Abby was attacked in an upstairs bedroom, while Andrew was found on a sofa downstairs. Both suffered repeated blows from a hatchet-like weapon. Lizzie, then 32, became the central suspect. 

Investigators questioned inconsistencies in her accounts of the morning. Another much-discussed detail involved a dress she burned after the killings. Lizzie said it was stained with paint, while the destruction raised suspicions about possible evidence. Police also recovered a broken-handled hatchet head, but prosecutors could not conclusively establish it as the murder weapon.

Lizzie’s trial began in June 1893 and became a media sensation. On June 20, the jury acquitted her. No one else was subsequently charged with the murders, and the case remains unresolved. 

The verdict did not restore her place in the community. She remained in Fall River but faced ostracism and persistent suspicion. The accusation became the defining fact of her public identity, regardless of what the jury had decided (via Time). 

That gap between the verdict and her reputation is arguably the story’s most compelling element. People often want a mystery to have a recognizable villain, and an unresolved case leaves room for each generation to supply its own motives and explanations.

Netflix’s series supplies a dramatic interpretation of those gaps. Beatty has described her character as a “very fictionalized version” of Borden, acknowledging the distance between researching a historical person and playing a character written for television (via Tudum).

That leaves the show with an interesting responsibility. It can imagine private conversations and explore motives that a historical record cannot establish, but viewers should distinguish those inventions from evidence. Whatever answers Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story offers, the real murders remain unsolved.

Are you looking forward to Ella Beatty’s take on Lizzie Borden? Share your thoughts on Monster’s latest chapter in the comments below!

Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story releases on Netflix on September 17, 2026.