“We know how it ended,” Ryan pointed out. “We know two people were brutally shot. Our view and what we wanted to do was present you all the facts and have you do two things: make up your own mind about who’s innocent, who’s guilty, and who’s the monster, and also have a conversation about something that’s never talked about in our culture, which is male sexual abuse, which we do responsibly.”
In fact, Lyle and Eric’s in-court defense—which claimed the two brothers had been the victims of physical and sexual abuse at the hands of their parents for years—features predominantly in the new series.
“If you look at that show, 60 to 65% of the show centers around Eric and Lyle Menendez talking about their abuse, talking about their victimization, talking about what it emotionally put them through,” Ryan noted. “Those two boys on our show, get their moment in court, and then so then some.”
But as the longtime producer added, “I’m used to this. I write about provocative things and controversial things, and my motto is ‘never complain and never explain.’”
