Over the years, everyone with a Netflix subscription has offered access to some of the most riveting and horrifying true crime documentaries and dramatic series based on history’s most notorious criminals. And while Mindhunter portrayed the lives and crimes of real-life serial killers of the 1970s and early 1980s, the show stopped short of one of the most infamous names in American criminal history: Jeffrey Dahmer, also known as the Milwaukee Cannibal or the Milwaukee Monster.
Well, that will soon change with Ryan Murphy’s upcoming limited series Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, which will dive into the psyche of the seemingly meek yet incredibly vicious serial killer who killed, dismembered, and ate at least 17 victims before he was finally brought to justice. And here is everything we know about the series so far.
The Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Cast Includes Evan Peters, Richard Jenkins And Penelope Ann Miller
Evan Peters, who has worked extensively with Ryan Murphy on the American Horror Story franchise, will step in for yet another dark role as has been cast to to play the Milwaukee Cannibal on Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. But the WandaVision star isn’t the only big name attached to appear on the Netflix limited series, as Richard Jenkins and Penelope Ann Miller have been cast as the convicted killer’s parents, Lionel and Joyce Dahmer.
The cast, according to Deadline, also includes Niecy Nash, who will be taking on the role of Glenda Cleveland, Damher’s concerned neighbor who tries to notify the authorities of the killer’s strange and downright terrifying behavior. Other members of the Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story cast include Shaun J. Brown and Colin Ford.
Monster Will Consist Of 10 Episodes Spanning Jeffrey Dahmer’s Entire Life
When news first broke that Netflix had greenlighted Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, Deadline reported that the limited series would play out over the course of 10 episodes, though a length of each of those chapters has yet to be revealed. One thing we do know about the true crime show is that it will span Jeffrey Dahmer’s entire life with portions of the series taking place in every decade between his birth in 1960 and eventual capture in 1991 and subsequent murder while in prison in 1994, according the the extensive timelines of his exploits found on Biogrphay.com.
Jeffrey Dahmer’s Crimes Will Be Told Through The Eyes Of His Victims On Monster
Whenever someone makes a show (or movie) about someone who committed crimes as atrocious as the ones Jeffrey Dahmer carried out, there needs to be a way to go about it delicately to avoid glorifying the crimes and criminal opposed to paying respect to their victims. Well, it sounds like Ryan Murphy and his creative team have found a way to go about this ever-so-delicately as Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story will be told through the eyes of the boys and young men who fell victim to the sadistic killer, according to Variety.
It has not been revealed if each of Dahmer’s 17 victims will be featured in the 10-episode limited series, but Monster will examine the killer’s white privilege and how he used it to evade capture despite being picked up by authorities at least 10 times before he was finally brought to justice in 1991.
Evan Peters Did A Lot Of Research And Wants To Make His Portrayal Of Jeffrey Dahmer Authentic
When it comes to a serial killer as infamous as Jeffrey Dahmer, there is a ton of information on the subject, which could make for quite a research project for an actor preparing to portray the Milwaukee Monster. And that’s the dilemma Evan Peters found himself in while preparing for his appearance in Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. In an April 2021 interview with Variety, Peters explained that he had to find a balance between the real-life killer and the character he is set to play, stating:
That’s a hard one, I’m still figuring that out. I’ve read so much, I’ve watched so much, I’ve seen so much, and at a certain point, you’ve got to say, ‘All right, that’s enough.’ There are beautifully written scripts. You can have all the backstory you want, but at the end of the day we’re not making a documentary. It’s more about maintaining the idea and the through line of why you’re telling the story and always having that as your guiding light. But, there’s so much material for Dahmer that I think it’s incredibly important to make it really authentic.
The Mare of Easttown star went on to reveal that once he completed all his research and read the scripts, he went through a great deal of trial and error and experimentation to get everything worked out and find that balance.
Mindhunter And Pose Directors Helmed Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
Ryan Murphy and his long-time producing partner have put together quite the team to tackle Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, a team whose members have directed episodes of shows like Mindhunter, The Leftovers, Pose, and Hollywood, to name only a few. In October 2020, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that Carl Franklin, who directed multiple episodes of Mindhunter Season 2 (including a large portion of the Atlanta Child Murders storyline) had been tasked with directing the show’s pilot episode.
Janet Mock, who wrote and directed multiple episodes of Pose and Hollywood, will helm multiple episodes of Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, though the exact count has not yet been announced. On top of that, Mock wrote several episodes as part of a writers room that also included David McMillan, who serves as the show’s supervising producer.
Production On Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story Was Reportedly Underway In June 2021
When Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story was announced in late 2020, there was talk that production would get underway at some point the following year, and it appears that’s exactly what happened. In June 2021, People.com published a photograph of Evan Peters dressed up to look like Jeffrey Dahmer while on set of the upcoming Netflix limited series. There wasn’t a lot of information on how long the shoot had been going on when the photo was released, nor anything on how much was left to film.
There is still a lot we don’t yet know about Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story at this point, but there are plenty of great upcoming Netflix shows to hold you over in the meantime.
