Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story brings the infamous 1892 Borden case into Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan’s Monster anthology, imagining the world surrounding Lizzie Borden inside a restrictive Victorian household in Fall River, Massachusetts.Show More
The series portrays Lizzie as a young heiress struggling against family expectations, emotional confinement, and the harsh control of her father Andrew and stepmother Abby. Her life changes dramatically when Bridget “Maggie” Sullivan arrives as a housekeeper and introduces her to a world beyond the boundaries of the Borden home. Their relationship becomes central to the story as affection, rebellion, resentment, and violence increasingly become intertwined.
The series takes inspiration from the real Borden murders while deliberately fictionalizing aspects of the story. It explores the environment surrounding Lizzie rather than treating the historical case as a simple mystery, focusing on how repression, social expectations, relationships, and accumulated anger shape the characters. Andrew and Abby represent the oppressive household that Lizzie struggles against, while Maggie becomes a catalyst for a very different life. The show also connects Lizzie’s story to the broader idea of female rage across generations, including historical and later figures woven into its narrative.
