Netflix has released the full trailer for Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, giving viewers a much better look at Ella Beatty as the infamous axe-murder suspect. You can watch the new trailer in the embed above. The eight-episode limited series premieres on Netflix on September 17, 2026.
Watch the Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story Trailer
The trailer puts Ella Beatty’s Lizzie Borden front and center. Beatty previously appeared in Ryan Murphy’s Feud: Capote vs. The Swans, and she leads a cast that includes Charlie Hunnam as Andrew Borden, Rebecca Hall as Abby Borden, Billie Lourd as Emma Borden, Jessica Barden as Nance O’Neill, and Joey Pollari as John Morse.
The trailer also offers a major look at Sarah Paulson as Aileen Wuornos, the real-life serial killer previously portrayed by Charlize Theron in the 2003 film Monster. Vicky Krieps‘ dual casting as Borden family maid Bridget Sullivan and Elizabeth Báthory adds another unusual element to the season.
Rather than treating Lizzie Borden’s story as a straightforward murder mystery, the series appears to be interested in the mythology that developed around her. Borden was accused of killing her father and stepmother with an axe in 1892, but she was acquitted at trial in 1893. The question of whether she actually committed the murders has remained a source of fascination for more than a century.
The official synopsis for the series reads:
“When the repressed daughter of a wealthy New England family and her rebellious maid find themselves trapped in a house built on humiliation and cruelty, they escape into a fantasy of sex, power, and revenge. The gruesome unsolved murders that follow don’t just shock the world—they give birth to an icon who refuses to live imprisoned in a cage, choosing instead to forge her own legend: shocking, monstrous, and gloriously free.”
The Netflix series is taking considerable dramatic license with the story, using Borden’s case as the starting point for an exploration of repression, sexuality, violence, power, and the ways women accused of horrific crimes become cultural icons. It also marks a major change for the Monster anthology. The first season focused on Jeffrey Dahmer, followed by seasons about Lyle and Erik Menendez and Ed Gein. With Lizzie Borden, the franchise is putting a woman at the center of its story for the first time.
Sarah Paulson plays Aileen Wuornos
One of the biggest surprises in the new trailer is Sarah Paulson’s appearance as Aileen Wuornos. Wuornos was a real-life serial killer who murdered seven men in Florida between 1989 and 1990. Her story previously became the basis for the 2003 film Monster, with Charlize Theron winning the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance as Wuornos.
Murphy has said that Wuornos was a story he had wanted to explore for years. He also wanted to tackle the story of Countess Elizabeth Báthory, the Hungarian noblewoman surrounded by centuries of accusations and legends of murder. That explains why Krieps has been given two roles in the new season. The result appears to be something considerably stranger than a conventional Lizzie Borden adaptation.
Max Winkler directs episodes 401, 402, 403, 405, 407, and 408, while Sarah Adina Smith directs episodes 404 and 406. Ian Brennan writes the series, which he created with Murphy.
The real Lizzie Borden
Lizzie Borden was 32 years old when her father, Andrew Borden, and stepmother, Abby Borden, were murdered. The prosecution accused Lizzie of committing the killings, but the evidence was circumstantial and she was acquitted after her highly publicized 1893 trial. She spent the rest of her life under the shadow of the accusations, becoming a fixture of American true crime folklore.
Her story has been adapted numerous times, including the 2014 Lifetime movie Lizzie Borden Took an Ax, starring Christina Ricci; the 2015 limited series The Lizzie Borden Chronicles; and the 2018 feature film Lizzie, starring Chloë Sevigny and Kristen Stewart.
Are you looking forward to Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story? What do you think of the new trailer? Let us know in the comments.
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