Critics Slammed It, But Viewers Love It: Netflix’s Latest Crime Drama Climbs to #2 in Weekly Top 10
Monster: The Ed Gein Story, the third season of the Netflix anthology series Monster, premiered on October 3. Created by Ian Brennan, the season focuses on the infamous murderer and suspected serial killer Ed Gein, played by Charlie Hunnam.
The cast also includes Suzanna Son, Vicky Krieps, Laurie Metcalf, and Tom Hollander. This season explores not only Gein’s crimes but also the cultural obsession with true crime, including his influence on Hollywood and pop culture.
This installment follows Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story (2022) and Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story (2024).
Unlike the previous seasons, Ryan Murphy was not involved, with Brennan serving as the sole creator and writer. The Ed Gein season was announced on September 14, 2024.
Critical reception for the season has been overwhelmingly negative. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the show holds a 22% Tomatometer score based on 27 reviews, while audience ratings on Rotten Tomatoes’ Popcornmeter sit at 54% from over 500 ratings.
The next chapter in Netflix’s Monster anthology is here to haunt you. Monster: The Ed Gein Story drops in one week. pic.twitter.com/x3HmabiOcP
— Netflix (@netflix) September 26, 2025
Critics criticized the season for its long runtime, excessive graphic violence, factual inaccuracies, and what they called distracting meta-commentary. Opinions on Hunnam’s performance were mixed.
“It was hard to take some of the subplots seriously, and the meta references felt forced,” one review noted.
Despite the negative reviews, the show has performed strongly with viewers. Netflix reported that the season picked up 12.2 million views in its first week, totaling 90.6 million hours watched, landing it in the weekly top 10, just behind of Wayward.
A fourth season of Monster, based on murder suspect Lizzie Borden, is currently in development.
While critics were quick to pan Monster: The Ed Gein Story, the strong viewer numbers show that audiences are still very interested in true crime stories. It seems that even a controversial take on real-life crimes can attract attention and spark conversation. What do you think, should Netflix focus on critical acclaim, or is audience engagement enough? Share your thoughts in the comments.