[title]
A new true-crime series is on the way to Netflix from the dark mind of Ryan Murphy and starring his old American Horror Story mucker Evan Peters. The actor will be swapping the mercurial Quicksilver in X-Men for an X-rated murder spree in a series that will chart the life and crimes of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.
Murphy, a showrunner best known to date for American Horror Story, Pose and The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, has teamed up again with Peters and Netflix – major proponents of the true-crime genre, too, of course – for a sure-to-be grisly true-life exploration of Dahmer’s long series of killings.
Dip under the police tape with us to find out everything we know so far about Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.
Is there a trailer for Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
No official stills have been released as yet, and there’s no trailer to date. Expect to see something relatively soon, however.
What is Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story about?
As the title implies, the series will chronicle the life of one of America’s most notorious serial killers. Monster will document events from the perspective of Dahmer’s victims, diving deeply into the files of police incompetence and apathy that allowed the killing spree to continue for years.
The ten-episode series will span the 1960s, ‘70s, and ‘80s, before concluding with Dahmer’s eventual arrest in the early 1991.
Between 1978 and 1991, Dahmer murdered and dismembered 17 men and boys, many of them people of colour and underage. Dubbed ‘the Milwaukee Cannibal’, his murders involved necrophilia, cannibalism and the preservation of body parts. Basically, he made Hannibal Lecter look like Mary Poppins.
Dahmer was eventually convicted of 16 murders. He was beaten to death in prison by another inmate in 1994, aged 34, just two years into a life sentence.
Monster – not be confused with the Charlize Theron movie about Florida serial killer Aileen Wuornos – will chart at least ten incidences of police inaction that allowed Dahmer to continue his killing spree unmolested.
Expect a powerful racial subtext and an unblinking examination of white privilege, as the clean-cut Dahmer was overlooked time and again as a menace to society. Rashad Johnson of racial justice organisation, Color of Change, is an executive producer on the show.
Who is in the cast of Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story?
Evan Peters will lead the cast in the titular role as Dahmer. The actor is a long-time Murphy collaboration, having appeared in eight of the nine seasons of American Horror Story, and appeared in his LGBTQ+ drama, Pose.
Alongside his work on American Horror Story, Peters is best known as Quicksilver in the X-Men universe. He’s promising a deep dive into Dahmer’s troubled psyche, fuelled by authenticity and painstaking research. ‘There’s so much material for Dahmer that I think it’s incredibly important to make it really authentic,’ he told Variety.
Two-time Oscar nominee Richard Jenkins and Penelope Ann Miller (Carlito’s Way) play Dahmer’s parents, Lionel and Joyce. Dahmer once spoke openly about his childhood, recalling extreme tension and numerous arguments between his parents during his early years.
Niecy Nash plays Glenda Cleveland, Dahmer’s concerned neighbour who first raised suspicions about his behaviour to the authorities.
When will Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story be released and where can I watch it?
Filmed in LA, with the Californian city standing in for Milwaukee, the series’s Netflix launch date is still TBC – although expect to see it later in 2022.
Promisingly, episode one is directed by veteran filmmaker Carl Franklin, the director behind terrific crime thrillers like Devil in a Blue Dress and One False Move.
The 30 best movies on Netflix UK right now.
Everything we know about HBO’s true-crime series My Dentist’s Murder Trial.