Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story is taking Netflix by storm, ranked among its most streamed new shows since premiering in mid-September 2024. While the focus is on brothers Erik and Lyle Menendez and the murder of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, fans have noticed a subtle mention in the show that connects someone close to the case with the movie Poltergeist. It’s a fascinating though equally tragic story that influenced how the Menendez case was covered by mainstream media, whether subconsciously or not.

Who Is Dominick Dunne?

Dominick Dunne was a respected journalist who started writing in the 1970s. At the time of the Menendez case, he was a frequent contributor to Vanity Fair, a pop culture and current affairs magazine published by Condé Nast that had (and continues to have) an influence on the public. He often wrote about criminal cases, and the Lyle and Erik Menendez case is one that he covered extensively. While the airing of the trial on Court TV had people glued to their TV screens, Dunne also helped shape the conversation with his articles and attention-grabbing headlines about it. He was often biased towards the prosecution in his writing, and many believe his coverage significantly contributed to overarching public opinion about the case. 

Monsters shows Dunne not only at the trial watching over the testimony and discussing interviews he has conducted with people who knew the boys, including family members, but he also notably appears in several scenes discussing the case with friends at swanky dinner parties. Played by Nathan Lane, Dunne is adamant that the boys deserve to be thrown in jail for life for what they did, and justice wouldn’t be served otherwise. But he had a prior life experience that likely swayed his perception.

Dunne’s Daughter Was Murdered

Dunne’s daughter Dominique was killed by her abusive ex-boyfriend, John Thomas Sweeney, who strangled her to death in front of her home. In the series, which shows flashbacks of that trial for context, Sweeney is on the stand discussing prior abuse he endured as a child. This, along with other arguments, influenced the jury in his case to change his charges to involuntary manslaughter instead of murder.

The same occurred in the true story, where Sweeney gave testimony about his controlling and abusive father. In the real case, the charges were also adjusted because of a lack of premeditation, provocation, and “heat of passion” defense. Sweeney spent only a few years in jail of his sentence before he was swiftly released. In Monsters, Dunne shouts out in anger at the end of the trial, something that actually happened in real life as well.

The sentence infuriated Dunne so much that he protested outside of a restaurant where Sweeney got a job as a chef after he was released, and even hired a private investigator to follow him for some time, according to Marie Claire. It’s no surprise, then, that these events made Dunne particularly sensitive to the boys’ case and wanting to see justice served for the tragic deaths of Jose and Kitty. He felt the sexual abuse defense was being used as a tactic to get the charges lessened because he had seen it before in his own daughter’s case. Though the young men did many things to harm their own case as well, including Lyle’s conversations with a woman who ended up writing a book about him, Dunne’s writings arguably played a role in the public not believing their allegations.

Later, however, after seeing Erik and Lyle give their testimony, Lane’s version of Dunne approaches Erik’s lawyer, Leslie Abramson (Ari Graynor), and apologizes, saying that he believes they might actually be telling the truth. Nonetheless, dealing with his own personal tragedy made Dunne view the Menendez case much differently than he might have had his daughter never been killed.

The Menendez and Poltergeist Connection

MGM

Dominique Dunne was more than just the daughter of a prominent journalist in California. She was an aspiring actor who had just started to secure roles and seemingly had a bright future ahead of her in acting. Her first was in the TV movie Diary of a Teenage Hitchhiker in 1979. She then appeared in a recurring role on the drama series Family in 1980 and had a role in the comedy series Breaking Away from 1980 to 1981.

Her most well-known role was as Dana Freeling in the iconic horror movie Poltergeist. The movie is about a family being haunted by ghosts that have their eye on the youngest daughter, Carol Anne (Heather O’Rourke). The 1982 film was a massive success and has since developed a cult following.

Poltergeist became a trilogy though Dunne only appeared in the first movie, since she had sadly passed away before the second movie was made. Her absence was explained by stating that the character was off at university.

Dunne did have a few more roles after that one. She was in the western movie The Shadow Riders and had a role on the series CHiPs. She appeared in an episode of Hill Street Blues, which aired two weeks after her death. Interestingly, the bruises her character sported as an abused woman were purportedly real ones that Sweeney had inflicted on her before filming. He, however, claims she got them by accident when he tried to prevent her from leaving the home.

What Happened in John Thomas Sweeney’s Trial?

Netflix/Hollywood True Crime/YouTube

Sweeney reportedly had a history of violence towards Dunne, with an incident where he ripped handfuls of her hair out from the roots mentioned by Lane’s version of Dunne in Monsters. He admitted to having killed her when police arrived, and indicated on the stand that he did not remember what happened after their argument on the lawn. He also indicated that he had tried to die by suicide afterward.

What’s more, Sweeney had a history of violence against women, though the evidence of this was not permitted in the case. Many believe evidence, including testimony from past girlfriends, could have helped sway the jury’s decision. So many, to this day, feel this was a case of clear-cut murder and justice was not served. The verdict and sentence left everyone, particularly the Dunne family, flabbergasted and outraged.

The parallels are easy to see. Sweeney’s defense rested on the fact that the murder was not premeditated nor “executed with malice,” and suggested he was provoked by Dunne deceiving him about getting back together. The “heat of passion” defense argument was also given, along with testimony of the abuse Sweeney himself endured at the hands of his father garnering him sympathy. Hearing similar arguments in defense of the Menendez brothers might have conjured up memories and skewed Dunne’s perception of the case. It likely played a role in shaping his coverage of the trial.

Dominique Dunne’s life was sadly cut short, while Dominick Dunne passed away in 2009 following a diagnosis of bladder cancer. Sweeney only spent a few years behind bars and has since moved and changed his name to protect his identity. Erik and Lyle Menendez remain in jail, where they have been since they were sentenced to life without parole in 1996.

Stream Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story on Netflix.