It looks like Today‘s Jenna Bush Hager has also gotten swept up in the buzz surrounding the Menendez brothers.
Erik Menendez and Lyle Menendez were infamously convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the 1986 murder of their parents. But Ryan Murphy‘s recent Netflix series Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story has renewed interest in their case. So much so, the Los Angeles district attorney recommended they receive a resentencing in light of the abuse they allegedly suffered at the hands of their parents.
Bush Hager confessed to Hoda Kotb and Today pop culture correspondent Naz Perez that she’s become deeply invested in the brothers’ case — so deep, she joked, her husband has become concerned.
“I’ve been deep in the Menendez brothers, very deep,” Bush Hager confessed during the show.
“Yeah, she has,” Kotb said.
“So deep my husband’s worried about my mental health,” Bush Hager joked.
Perez explained that, while Murphy’s fictionalized retelling of their story may have brought them back into the zeitgeist, the brothers thought the Monsters series was “ruinous.”
“Based off their ages at the time of the case in 1989 they would be eligible as youthful offenders and be eligible of parole,” she explained.
Kotb added, “The judge acknowledged the abuse and said given that factor we should take another look at it.”
The Menendez brothers have been granted a hearing Nov. 29 to review new evidence.
Kim Kardashian, who visited the brothers in prison with Monsters actor Cooper Koch, has since spoken out in their defense and called on the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office to “right the wrong they did.”
“The sentence that they’ve had, they’ve been in it for almost 35 years. That’s more than a first-degree murder charge,” Kardashian said. “I am someone who believes in second chances and I really believe in them.”
Today with Hoda & Jenna airs on weekdays at 10/9c on NBC.
If you or someone you know needs to reach out about sexual abuse or assault, RAINN is available 24/7 at 800-656-HOPE (4673), or online at RAINN.org.