Netflix has released the full trailer for Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, the fourth installment in Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s true-crime anthology series. The new season centers on Lizzie Borden, the woman accused of murdering her father and stepmother with an axe in 1892.
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Ella Beatty takes on the title role in the eight-episode season, which explores the tensions inside a wealthy 19th-century New England family. The story follows Borden and her maid as they respond to familial cruelty and move into a cycle of revenge.
Beatty leads the cast alongside Charlie Hunnam and Rebecca Hall, who play Borden’s father and stepmother. Their roles place the family dynamic at the center of the season, with the series examining repression, control and violence within the Borden household.
The cast also includes Sarah Paulson as serial killer Aileen Wuornos and Vicky Krieps as Elizabeth Báthory. Their appearances extend the season beyond the central Borden story and continue Murphy and Brennan’s interest in figures associated with some of history’s most notorious crimes.
The new installment follows three previous seasons of the Monster anthology, which focused on Jeffrey Dahmer, the Menendez brothers and Ed Gein. Each chapter uses a different case as its central subject while examining the people and circumstances surrounding the crimes.
For The Lizzie Borden Story, Max Winkler directs six of the eight episodes. Sarah Adina Smith directs episodes four and six, contributing to the visual direction of the season alongside Winkler.
Brennan serves as co-creator and writer on the series. Murphy and Brennan also executive produce alongside Winkler, Eric Kovtun, Scott Robertson, Louise Shore, Nissa Diederich, Todd Kubrak, Carl Franklin and Tanase Popa.
The trailer offers the first extended look at Beatty’s performance as Borden and the tense family relationships that drive the story. It places the character within the restrictive environment of her home while introducing the anger and resentment that develop throughout the season.
The series approaches Borden through the dynamics surrounding the murder accusations rather than treating the case solely as a procedural retelling. The narrative focuses on the conditions inside the family, the connection between Borden and her maid, and the emotional pressure that builds around them.
By introducing Wuornos and Báthory into the season, the series also broadens its exploration of female figures associated with violence and criminal history. Their inclusion connects Borden’s story to a wider group of infamous women while keeping the central narrative focused on the events surrounding the 1892 murders.
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story arrives as the latest chapter in one of Netflix’s continuing true-crime anthology projects from Murphy and Brennan. All eight episodes will premiere exclusively on Netflix on September 17, 2026.
