Charlie Hunnam is back in Netflix's Monster anthology, but his fourth-season role is a striking change from the character he played the season before. In Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, Hunnam portrays Andrew Borden, the father of Lizzie Borden, played by Ella Beatty.
That switch is one of the season's most notable casting details. Hunnam previously played Ed Gein in the third season. This time, he is portraying a historical figure who was murdered in 1892 and whose daughter was later tried and acquitted in the case.
Why Ian Brennan wanted Hunnam back
Showrunner Ian Brennan told PEOPLE that the production did not want to say goodbye to Hunnam after the previous season. Brennan described the actor as a strong presence on set and said the team saw an opportunity to use him in a very different role.
Director Max Winkler, who also worked with Hunnam on the Ed Gein season, said the new production gave the actor a different working environment. Hunnam was no longer carrying the same kind of sustained responsibility associated with playing Gein, according to Winkler.
Andrew Borden is a very different character
The change is not simply a new costume. Netflix's official cast guide describes the series' Andrew Borden as a difficult and controlling father whose relationship with Lizzie is central to the drama. The show uses that family environment as part of its interpretation of the events leading to the murders.
Hunnam told PEOPLE that playing Andrew felt liberating in part because the historical record contains far less detail about Andrew's personality than exists for some other famous historical figures. That gave the actor and filmmakers more room to construct a dramatic interpretation while still working from the known outline of the case.
From Ed Gein to Andrew Borden
The contrast between the two roles is particularly notable because Hunnam's Ed Gein performance placed him at the center of a story about a convicted murderer. Andrew Borden, by contrast, is one of the victims at the center of the Lizzie Borden case.
That does not mean the two characters are presented as simple opposites. The new series builds a fictionalized portrait of the Borden household and uses Andrew as part of its larger exploration of family conflict, Victorian social expectations and the circumstances surrounding the killings.
What is known about the real case?
Andrew Borden and his second wife, Abby Borden, were killed in Fall River, Massachusetts, on Aug. 4, 1892. Lizzie Borden was tried in 1893 and acquitted. The historical question of who committed the murders remains unresolved, even though later generations have continued to debate the evidence.
Netflix's own background material emphasizes that the series is a dramatization rather than a literal reconstruction. Several relationships, motivations and events are expanded or reimagined for television.
Where to watch
Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story is now streaming on Netflix and contains eight episodes.
Quick answer
Charlie Hunnam returned to Monster because the creative team wanted to keep working with him and saw a different opportunity in Andrew Borden. Hunnam has said the relative lack of detailed historical information about Andrew also gave him greater freedom to build the character.
Sources
- PEOPLE interview with Ian Brennan, Max Winkler and Charlie Hunnam
- Netflix Tudum cast guide
- Netflix official series page
Fact-check note
This article distinguishes the Netflix dramatization from documented history. Lizzie Borden was acquitted in 1893; claims about guilt, private relationships, motives and events not established by surviving records are described as fictionalized or disputed rather than settled fact.
Netflix Tudum: The True Story · Netflix Tudum: Ending Explained · PEOPLE: Fact vs Fiction · PEOPLE: Emma/Lizzie Fact Check
Related: Charlie Hunnam's Monster Role: What Changed From Ed Gein to Andrew Borden
Related: Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story Cast Guide — Ella Beatty, Charlie Hunnam and More
