Netflix’s Monster Season 4 casts two actors in brand new roles

HBO
Jessica Barden - Source: Getty

If you are a fan of true-crime shows that have a new story to tell every season, Monster has been keeping it spicy with outrageous cases, a good mix in the cast, and more than enough shocking twists.

The 4th season is entirely devoted to the well-known Lizzie Borden case, the axe, her father, and her stepmother.

We will witness two new stars, Jessica Barden and Billie Lourd, entering the drama to play completely new roles that will most likely disrupt the dynamics further. They are poised to introduce new relationships, new tensions, and additional secrets into the Borden house.


Casting of Billie Lourd and Jessica Barden among others

Billie Lourd at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival - "Adulthood" Premiere - Source: Getty
Billie Lourd at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival - "Adulthood" Premiere - Source: Getty

Billie Lourd and Jessica Barden are not just there to make a few cameo appearances in Monster Season 4. They are going to be a part of the show as significant recurring characters who are tied to the Borden family. Lourd will star as Emma Barden, the elder sister of Lizzie, and Barden will play Nance O’Neill, one of Lizzie’s friends.

Ella Beatty takes the lead role of Lizzie, and there are familiar faces like Rebecca Hall and Vicky Krieps in supporting parts. Such a combination of young talents and experienced actors demonstrates that the makers of Monster Season 4 are interested in both the flair and the substance.

Lourd has a reputation for playing tart, genre-friendly characters in other Ryan Murphy shows, while Barden has the ability to play complicated, even tough roles. The two of them would bring a tight and tense house atmosphere, which would be ideal to recount the Borden story anew.


Why does the Lizzie Borden case still hook us?

The Lizzie Borden case has become a part of the American legend: an axe, a gruesome killing of two victims, and a courtroom trial, which concluded with an acquittal. Lizzie was charged with murder of her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts in 1892. She was cleared of the charges yet the gossip and judgement never ceased.

This mystery continues to capture attention, as it combines unresolved issues, family conflict, and the constraints imposed on women at the time. It demonstrates the way rumors may seem like evidence and how an entire story can be constructed based on one individual, whether or not it is true.

The case holds a mirror to the viewers today. It poses the question of who is actually a monster and what does that make us. A huge production like Monster could dwell on the drama of the trial, when people were all performing for the jury, the neighbors, and the newspapers, while the mundane aspects of history are often being overlooked.


What to expect?

Netflix's Monster has made a distinct pattern across all its seasons: choosing a well-known crime, casting high-profile talents and allowing the story to swing between sympathy and pure horror. The previous seasons dealt with Jeffrey Dahmer and the Menedaz brothers, and the third season was dedicated to Ed Gein. The Lizzie Borden case now provides the show with an opportunity to put emphasis on a woman who was at the center stage of a notorious crime.

Viewers should anticipate flashy sceneries, family time, and sensitive performances. Monster Season 4 will allow the audience to look at the story from new perspectives and reconsider who to trust and who not to.


For more such insights on Monster Season 4, keep following SoapCentral.

Edited by Yesha Srivastava