Erik and Lyle Menendez discuss the TikTok movement amid renewed interest in cases

When Court TV began re-airing the first trial of Erik and Lyle Menendez during the pandemic, a whole new generation became aware of the 1990s murder case that created a media sensation years before they were born.

The brothers from Beverly Hills were 18 and 21 years old, respectively, when they shot and killed their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, in 1989. Their first trial in 1993, where they were tried together and with separate jurors, ended in a hung jury. The female jurors agreed with her self-defense argument that both boys had been sexually, physically and emotionally abused by their father since childhood and that, since their mother knew, they feared for their lives; but the male jurors did not.

“The first trial was a hung jury. It wasn't something a jury of their peers could convict them of, and it was replayed almost in real time (in 2020) for a whole new generation, and people were very emotional about it,” said Ross Dinerstein, producer of Netflix New The Menendez brothers Documentary, explained in a recent chat with The Hollywood Reporter about how Court TV's reopening of the case helped launch a TikTok and social media movement calling for Erik and Lyle's release.

“It piqued interest again,” echoed his Campfire Studios partner on the documentary, Rebecca Evans. “Nowadays people look at cases like this, cases of abuse, differently. So (our documentary) was an opportunity to tell their story, both for us and for them, in a different time when people think about things differently.”

Producers said the imprisoned brothers – who are serving a life sentence without parole after their second trial and conviction in 1996 (the judge banned the defense from taking testimony about the abuse and took manslaughter off the table); they were convicted of the first – Final Murder) – had caught wind of the shift in cultural support, and that was partly why they came together to support the Campfire Studios project for the first time in decades.

The two hour one The Menendez brothers The documentary was released on Netflix on Monday and now there is an accompanying three-episode podcast. Introducing the Menendez brothersincludes audio recordings of Erik and Lyle opening up to director Alejandro Hartmann via telephone interviews conducted in 15-minute increments due to prison communication restrictions at the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility, where they reunited in 2018.

The timeline surrounding this push to “liberate the Menendi” has grown louder in recent weeks, following Netflix's first release of Ryan Murphy's scripted series. Monsters: The Story of Erik and Lyle Menendezwhich quickly shot to #1 on the streamer (and is now #2 behind Rom-Com). Nobody wants that). Between the publication of Monster And The Menendez brothers doc, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office announced that the brothers' habeas corpus petition, which they filed in 2023, is now being reviewed and that they will make a decision on whether resentencing is warranted. A hearing is scheduled for November 29th. (Read more about the steps that led to the petition here.)

Evans, chatting with THRsaid they were aware of this update as they completed their documentary, which has been in the works for four years and has been in editing for the past year. The petition, which could be the brothers' last chance to seek a review since they no longer have an appeal, contains new evidence, including a letter from young Erik that his lawyers say confirms allegations that he was sexually abused by his father been abused. They submitted their petition after another person, Menudo band member Rosselló, came forward in 2023 with allegations of abuse against their father.

When Erik and Lyle spoke with Hartmann in newly released conversations for the podcast, they touched on the newfound hope they have from their supporters, but warned of two things. First, that the new generation of case prosecuters does not lose sight of the seriousness of their crime, and second, that it can be treacherous to have hope for the brothers at this point in their lives, now in their fifties.

“I think the problem with TikTok is that you find a black and white view of history. Where they are like heroes or like victims. “It's hard to see the complexity in 30 seconds, that's the problem,” Hartmann says, acknowledging the mystery and skepticism that still exists around the case since the two victims are not here to speak out , bringing Erik and Lyle into play.

“I really appreciate the support of the people who have written to me and are supporting me – supporting me (people who) believe that I shouldn't spend the rest of my life in prison,” Erik says. “I've heard of a lot of videos, I'm sure there are very serious TikTok videos, but I also know there are ones that aren't. I can only see what's on TV and what stories are being told about it. I am concerned and believe it is important that the seriousness of my crime is not downplayed or diminished.”

He continues: “This tragedy has been profound and every member of my family has been affected. And sometimes I think in some TikTok videos a lot of that pain and tragedy gets lost in translation. That's why I think it's important that we remember that two people are no longer alive and their families have been devastated by this tragedy and that I am at the center. I'm the one responsible for this. I don’t want that to be diminished or minimized in any way by people who support me and believe in me.”

Lyle says he feels “strengthened by the collective hope” he felt from the new generations now following her case. “The younger followers of this kind of TikTok social media generation are really hopeful. I am ready to carry their hope forward and we will see what happens,” he says. “I’m certainly not as hopeless as I was as a 21-year-old. Obviously, I feel more hope when society seems to better understand these experiences and sexual abuse. So I have hope and I also see how many people who have life sentences get paroled and still go home and get paroled because they've been rehabilitated and I definitely feel like my Brother and I are rehabilitated.”

But Erik shares his reservations about hope. “I have seen so many disappointments when it comes to appeals from people who have gathered to get signatures from the governor or from lawyers who believe this because case law is evolving to understand the impact of childhood trauma and developmental trauma and how that plays out now. “We as adults know that laws change,” he says. “But I'm wary enough to get my hopes up because the court system hasn't given us any evidence that they're going to overturn the case. And although I am hopeful and praying, I am concerned about my hopes for a calling. Every time I get hope, the disappointment is more intense, deeper and more personal.”

He adds: “There's a saying that hope is a good thing, but hope can be torturous. And it's been a torment in my life.”

In the past month, in which both Netflix offerings were released, two Change.org petitions calling for a retrial based on new evidence and legal reforms received more than 150,000 new signatures, bringing the total to nearly half a million . Kim Kardashian visited the brothers in prison and then advocated for their release in a viral comment. Dinerstein and Evans said they plan to reconnect with the brothers before the Nov. 29 hearing. “We believe this story is far from over and would like to continue,” Dinerstein said THR.

“I think they probably deserve their time in court, at least with some of this new evidence,” Murphy also said recently THR. “And then the courts have to decide. I hope they get justice. And that’s how courts are supposed to work, right?”