True crime might be popular, but DAHMER - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story was especially successful upon its release on Netflix. The series, featuring Evan Peters as the cannibalistic killer, was co-created by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan. Along with delving into the horrific crimes perpetrated by Dahmer, the series also touches on the killings through the viewpoints of the victims and family members.
After its release, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story had users on Netflix streaming the program for billions of streaming hours, making the show Netflix's second highest-watched English language series of all time. Even if the series has been met with various controversies, its high viewership and subsequent 2-season renewal have made Monster a big hit for Netflix. While the show's creators were obviously hoping for the best, as they would be with every project, Murphy is still trying out exactly what it was that made this show as popular as it became, per a new video from Netflix about the making of the series.
"I'm asked all the time, 'Why do you think it has happened?' And I really don't know. I have theories. I think about it a lot, but I really don't understand it... I have two theories about the success of this show. (One) is that I think it came out at a time when people were looking to put their anxieties in something, or express anxiety, or maybe to watch something that's more anxious than the world they're experiencing. I think there's that."
Murphy goes on to suggest that an increased general interest in mental health may have more people open to checking out something like Monster. It's a given that Dahmer was someone who very clearly struggled with mental illness, but the series also touched on how others surrounding the killer health with their own struggles. Perhaps that added a relatable element to the show.
"I also think that, since Covid, people are very interested in examining pieces that talk about mental health, and all of your characters, every one of you, have those scenes. Where you're either at rock bottom and you ask for help and say, 'I'm not doing very well.' Even Dahmer. And I wonder if that touched a nerve with people."
Why Was Dahmer Such a Streaming Hit?
Molly Ringwald also stars in the series as Shari Dahmer, Jeffrey's stepmother. She offered her own theory on the show's success, wondering if putting more of the spotlight on the victims rather than keeping it all on Dahmer throughout made watching the show more appealing. For her part, Ringwald says this was what made her personally so interested in Monster from the start. She also agrees that the focus on mental illness probably played a part.
"I know that there were a lot of Dahmer projects... but everything that I ever saw on Dahmer did not focus on the victims as much, and their stories. And I feel like that really, people were really interested. And that was what I found really interesting was that it focused so much on the victims, and that everybody is a human being in the story. Even, sorry, Dahmer. I know. To me, he was really mentally ill, and one of the great tragedies is that they weren't able to examine his brain after."
Murphy went on to explain that when he pursued the series, he wasn't interested so much in telling a story about Dahmer being "the monster," but what exactly led him to that point. It's complicated to point to any one person or incident as being culpable for what would happen with Dahmer, and that there aren't exactly any right or wrong answers. Perhaps that complication is another factor that has gotten so many people to talk about the series.
DAHMER - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is streaming on Netflix.