Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is one of Netflix‘s most anticipated releases.
Yes, the streamer is returning to one of America’s most infamous unsolved murder cases for the fourth instalment of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s Monster anthology.
Following Jeffrey Dahmer, the Menendez brothers and Ed Gein, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story turns its attention to the Massachusetts woman accused of murdering her father and stepmother in 1892. Ella Beatty takes on the title role, joined by a seriously stacked cast including Charlie Hunnam, Rebecca Hall, Vicky Krieps, Billie Lourd and Sarah Paulson.
But while the real-life crimes unfolded in Fall River, Massachusetts, the Netflix series takes viewers elsewhere behind the scenes. Here’s everything to know about Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, from its release date and cast to the true story and locations connected to the case.
When is Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story released?
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story premieres on Netflix on September 17, 2026. It marks the fourth instalment of Murphy and Brennan’s Emmy-winning Monster anthology and its first centred on a female figure.
The new season follows 2022’s DAHMER – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, 2024’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story and 2025’s Monster: The Ed Gein Story.
What is Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story about?
The series revisits the events surrounding the brutal deaths of Andrew and Abby Borden in Massachusetts in 1892, with their daughter Lizzie eventually accused of the murders.
Netflix’s interpretation introduces Lizzie as a young woman constrained by life in a strict Victorian household. The drama also explores an intimate relationship between Lizzie and the family’s maid, Bridget “Maggie” Sullivan, played by Vicky Krieps, as tensions within the Borden home escalate.
Beatty has made an important distinction between history and drama, explaining that while she researched the real case extensively, her performance ultimately represents the fictionalised Lizzie created for the series.
Is Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story based on a true story?
Yes – but the real story isn’t quite as straightforward as the gruesome rhyme that turned Lizzie Borden into an American legend.
On August 4, 1892, Lizzie’s father, Andrew Borden, and her stepmother, Abby Borden, were found murdered inside their home in Fall River, Massachusetts. Both had suffered repeated blows from a sharp weapon.
Lizzie was arrested a week later and ultimately stood trial for the murders. Despite the suspicion surrounding her, the prosecution struggled to establish its case, and a jury acquitted Borden in June 1893. She was never convicted of killing Andrew and Abby, and the murders officially remain unsolved.
The case nevertheless followed Borden for the rest of her life and became one of the most enduring murder mysteries in American history.
So while Monster uses real people and a real crime as its foundation, viewers shouldn’t assume everything depicted on screen has been established as historical fact.
Who is in the Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story cast?
Ella Beatty leads the series as Lizzie Borden, while Charlie Hunnam plays her father, Andrew Borden, and Rebecca Hall portrays her stepmother, Abby.
Vicky Krieps stars as Bridget “Maggie” Sullivan, the family’s maid, while Billie Lourd plays Lizzie’s older sister Emma and Jessica Barden appears as actress Nance O’Neil.
And there’s another particularly intriguing addition: Sarah Paulson plays serial killer Aileen Wuornos.
Why is Sarah Paulson playing Aileen Wuornos?
This is where Monster is expanding beyond a straightforward retelling of the Borden murders.
Aileen Wuornos wasn’t even born until 1956 – more than 60 years after the murders – so she obviously never crossed paths with Lizzie Borden.
Instead, Netflix says Paulson appears in sequences taking place in a different era, with the series drawing connections between Borden’s cultural legacy and women who committed acts of violence generations later.
Paulson’s appearance also marks another reunion with Murphy after her numerous roles across the American Horror Story universe and other projects.
Where is Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story set?
The historical story takes place in Fall River, Massachusetts, a former textile powerhouse in southeastern New England, close to the Rhode Island border.
More importantly for anyone fascinated by the case, the actual Borden family home still stands at 230 Second Street.
Andrew and Abby were murdered inside the property, and many of the rooms associated with the events of August 4, 1892 remain part of the house’s story today.
Where was Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story filmed?
Although Lizzie Borden’s story is set in Massachusetts, the Netflix production was primarily based in Los Angeles rather than filming the entire series in Fall River.
That means viewers hoping the new season was shot entirely at the actual Borden house and its surrounding Massachusetts streets shouldn’t assume what they see on screen is the actual location.
There was also filming connected to the production in Rome, Italy, giving the series a considerably more international production footprint than its New England story might suggest.
Can you visit the real Lizzie Borden House?
Yes – the Lizzie Borden House in Fall River is open to visitors, with daytime house tours taking guests through the rooms where the family lived and the murders occurred. The property currently also offers evening ghost tours and ghost hunts, while tours of nearby Oak Grove Cemetery explore another location connected to the Borden story.
The house tour lasts around 90 minutes and includes the room where Abby Borden was killed, alongside an account of the family’s daily life and the events surrounding the murders.
So while Netflix may be recreating 1892 Fall River elsewhere, the real location at the centre of Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is one viewers can actually visit.
Is there a Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story trailer?
Yes. Netflix released both the teaser and full trailer on August 20, giving audiences their first substantial look at Beatty’s transformation into Lizzie.
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story premieres on Netflix on September 17, 2026.