Osgood Perkins criticizes 'Monster' for the “Netflixization of real pain” after depiction of Anthony Perkins

At the beginning of the month, Netflix premiere Monster: The Ed Gein Storythe new season of the anthology series Monsterco-created by Ryan Murphy e Ian Brennan.

The goal of the anthology series is “tell the stories of monstrous figures who have impacted society.” The story of Jeffrey Dahmer was previously covered in Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Storyand that of the Menéndez brothers in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.

If something has been the cause of criticism Monster since the first season, it is creative freedom that is taken when portraying figures, victims and events, creating a sense of altered reality for the audience, and creating discomfort among all those close to the events that occurred. This has not been the exception with the season focused on Ed Geinwhich is probably the one that has taken the most liberties in its on-screen portrait.

To have a little context, we tell you that Ed Gein, also nicknamed “The Mad Butcher” and “The Plainfield Demon,” was a well-known serial killer of the 1950s who not only dedicated himself to slaughter, but also exhumed graves to use human remains y fur in the manufacture of household items and clothing. It is said that His crimes inspired films like Psychoto the villain Leatherface from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre y The Silence of the Lambs.

For the series, Murphy and Brennan created their own version of the actor Anthony Perkinsrecognized in the film industry for playing the chilling Norman Bates in the classic Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock, this being one of many factors why critics and moviegoers have described the season as nothing less than reprehensible.

Joey Pollari plays Anthony Perkins in the series, as a man struggling to stay in the closet, defined by his murderous role in Psycho and feeling like a “monster” for being gay.

In case you haven't seen the series, we launched a SPOILER ALERT for the following text.

In the second episode of the new season, the creation of Psychoin the chapter titled “Sick as Your Secrets.” In a scene that is particularly uncomfortable and insensitiveHitchcock compares Perkins' “secret”—depicted as a repressed gay man who vomits after having sex with someone of the same sex—with Gein's own sexual depravities, delivering twisted lines.

Anthony Perkins is not around to see Murphy, Brennan and Netflix's portrayal of him. The actor died in 1992 from complications related to AIDS, but the one who is alive is his son, the filmmaker Osgood Perkins (director and screenwriter of Longlegs, The Monkeyy Keeper).

In statements shared to TMZ, the director admitted that he has not seen Monster: The Ed Gein Story and that “I wouldn't even see it with a 3-meter pole,” given the creative liberties taken and the representation he makes of his father.

Perkins states that streaming platforms have done big business promoting true crimes and? They often try to give them “glamorous and meaningful content”.

The filmmaker is concerned that contemporary culture is being “reshaped in real time by overlords”adding that is “increasingly devoid of context and that the Netflixization of real pain plays in favor of the wrong team”.

Osgood calls on people to protect history and truth, not reducing it to what is convenientbut “looking behind the veil into the unknowable and loving one another through a new and expansive art.”

While Anthony Perkins' sexuality was an open secret in Hollywood, he remained married to Berry BerensonOsgood's mother, until her death from AIDS at age 60 in 1992.

Although the last season of Monster is about Ed Gein, is only partially based on his story, and also addresses the influence of his crime on films such as those mentioned Psycho, The Texas Chain Saw Massacrey The Silence of the Lambs.

Harold Schechterauthor of the book on Gein, Deviant: The Shocking True Story of Ed Gein, the original psychopathdeclared to the New York Post that “a large percentage of the series is pure invention” and that Murphy's controversial season “It is enormously far from the reality of the case. Much of it is pure exaggerated invention.”.

For the fourth season of MonsterMuphy and Brennan will tackle the story of Lizzie Borden, a 19th century murderer.