‘Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story’ Debuts With 12.1M Views on Netflix; Here’s How It Compares To Prior Seasons
Picture Credit: Netflix
The top 10 data is in, and Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is the main story, opening to a massive viewership that proves the franchise’s enduring strength. We’ll also cover the rest of the English TV top 10, which saw strong debuts for Crew Girl, the return of The Gentlemen, and the continued weekly success of WWE Raw.
Despite its massive viewership, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story continues the franchise’s trend of struggling to win over critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Season 4 currently sits at 42% with critics and 57% with audiences.
Of course, since the launch of DAHMER, Ryan Murphy’s true-crime anthology has frequently found itself at the center of critical polarization. While audiences consistently tune in by the tens of millions, reviewers have routinely levied criticism aimed at the franchise’s tone, pacing, and the ethical dilemmas of dramatizing real-life tragedies. The Lizzie Borden Story is no exception, currently sitting with a “Rotten” critical consensus that sharply contrasts with its number-one spot on the global charts. It proves once again that for this franchise, a lack of critical acclaim is barely a speed bump when it comes to capturing subscriber curiosity.
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story Opens Strong, Continuing Franchise Success
Netflix had another incredibly successful launch for Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, the fourth and latest installment in one of Netflix’s biggest franchises. It’s once again brought into the spotlight another infamous true-crime figure, and audiences are showing up in droves.
In its opening week, The Lizzie Borden Story was the undisputed top performer, ranking as the most-watched title of the week on the Netflix Global Top 10 across both series and films. It hit #1 with a massive 12.1 million views and reached the Top 10 in 89 countries.
This fourth installment opened to strong viewership that is directly in line with previous chapters. For comparison, The Ed Gein Story opened to 12.2 million views, and The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story opened to 12.3 million views.
Important Note: DAHMER released on a Wednesday, compared to a Thursday for the other releases.
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Netflix Viewership Comparison – DAHMER, Monsters – The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, Monster: The Ed Gein Story and Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story (1-week analysis)
Cumulative views over 1 weeks for 4 Netflix titles: DAHMER, Monsters – The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, Monster: The Ed Gein Story, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story. Combined total: 58,600,000 views.
Netflix cumulative views ranking for DAHMER, Monsters – The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story, Monster: The Ed Gein Story and Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story over 1 weeks.
Title
Opening Week Views
Rank
DAHMER
22,000,000
1
Monsters – The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story
12,300,000
2
Monster: The Ed Gein Story
12,200,000
3
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story
12,100,000
4
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The track record for Ryan Murphy’s true-crime anthology remains virtually unparalleled. Since the franchise’s premiere in 2022 with DAHMER, all four installments of Monster have reached #1 on the Global Top 10. Netflix also notes that since 2023 the franchise has accumulated nearly 170 million views across its subsequent seasons, based on engagement reports.
The Rest of the English TV Top 10
Outside of Monster, the English TV list for the week of September 14 saw an eclectic mix of new dramas, reality, live sports entertainment, and highly anticipated returning series.
Here is how the English TV Top 10 breaks down this week:
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story: Season 1
Crew Girl: Season 1
The Gentlemen: Season 2
Gabby’s Dollhouse: Season 14
The Gentlemen: Season 1
Raw: 2026: “September 14, 2026”
Death of the Pastor’s Wife: Season 1
Jo Koy: Blue in the Face
Mark Rober’s CrunchLabs: Season 5
Beauty in Black: Season 3
A few major takeaways from the rest of the list: Crew Girl debuted strong in the number two spot, right behind Monster. We also saw a significant boost for Guy Ritchie’s The Gentlemen, with the debut of Season 2 pulling Season 1 right back into the top 5.
We’ve got more top 10 data analysis coming at you within the next few hours, covering all the other major titles – stay tuned!