Ryan Murphy, Please No More True Crime Stories..

As much as I hate to admit this, throughout middle and high school, I was a huge Ryan Murphy fan. For years, Ryan Murphy has been seen as an extremely influential figure within the film and television industry and it’s easy to see why. Being the man behind television shows such as “Glee” and “Scream Queens”, he has been a dominating force for almost 20 years often being cited for his inclusivity of LGBT+ characters on screen.

Following the success of the anthology fictionalized horror show, “American Horror Story”, Murphy and long-time collaboration partner Brad Falcuk decided to branch out into a new genre: True Crime.

In 2016, Murphy and Falchuk produced the first season of “American Crime Story” centered around the 1994 murders of Nicole Brown and Ronald Goldman, and the trial of O.J. Simpson following their deaths. With big names such as Cuba Gooding Jr. and John Travolta, starring as main characters, the series received a lot of praise. However this praise came solely from fans and the media, Nicole Brown’s family found issue with the series.

Following its release, the families of both Brown and Goldman came forward revealing that Murphy, or any others behind the show, consulted them beforehand or involved them throughout the show’s production. The families expressed feelings of disrespect and a lack of concern and empathy for those directly impacted by the crime.

Rather than treating the crime as the tragedy it was, Murphy turned the story into quick entertainment that people were easily able to binge on Netflix.

Many people began questioning Murphy and his collaborators’ creative process, and why the victims’ families seemed to be sidelined yet rather than apologize and address the issue head-on, he made two more seasons of “American Crime Story” and continued to dive further into the true crime genre with the creation of his series, “Monster”.

The first season of “Monster”, airing in 2022, told the story of Jeffery Dahmer, played by Evan Peters. The series, rather than shed light on the victims' stories, focused solely on Dahmer and what he did to his victims. While Murphy claims families were contacted, once again, the families of Dahmer’s victims, some of whom were portrayed in the series, revealed they were also never consulted and expressed frustration with the show’s inaccuracy.

One would think following the first season of “Monster”’ with the backlash, there wouldn’t be a second season, but you would be wrong. In September, the second second was released focusing on Erik and Lyle Menendez played by Cooper Koch and Nicholas Chavez. As soon as it was released, the Menendez brothers themselves, who are currently still in prison, and their families, took to social media to call out Murphy for never meeting with them and for his inaccurate and exploitative depiction of the brothers.

For a third time (who would’ve guessed?) Murphy refused to take accountability. Instead, Murphy praised himself for bringing attention to the brother’s case and stated his disinterest in ever meeting with the brothers.

People have called out true crime entertainment for its exploitative nature and being harmful long before Murphy released “American Crime Story” or “Monsters”. However, Murphy is a major influential figure in perpetuating this idea.

Based on Murphy’s comments or lack thereof concerning the backlash from victims and their families, one thing is clear: Ryan Murphy has capitalized off of untrue and inaccurate retellings of tragedy for years and it’s time to stop.

Please stick to stories like “Glee” and “9-1-1”, we’re begging you.