Having already focused on Jeffrey Dahmer and the Menendez brothers, Ryan Murphy’s hit Netflix anthology series Monster will be turning its attention to infamous serial killer Ed Gein for Season 3, with Sons of Anarchy’s Charlie Hunnam portraying the titular character. Now, three more cast members have been added to the mix, taking on the roles of some other real-life figures you’ll surely recognize that will bring a further sense of realism to the dramatic tale.
Per Variety, Laurie Metcalf is set to portray Gein’s mother, Augusta, while Tom Hollander and Olivia Williams have been cast in the roles of Alfred Hitchcock and his wife, Alma Reville. Metcalf is perhaps best known for playing Jackie Harris in Roseanne and its spin-off, The Conners, but if you haven’t checked out her Oscar-nominated role in 2017’s Lady Bird, you’re truly missing out on her incredible versatility. Hollander and Murphy are already familiar with one another, with the actor having worked with him previously by portraying Truman Capote in Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (don’t forget about his performance in The White Lotus, too), while Williams is a superstar in her own right, having gained critical acclaim for her portrayal of Camilla Parker Bowles in The Crown.
Gein first rose to prominence in 1957 with the discovery of fellow Plainfield, Wisconsin resident Bernice Worden gutted and hanging from the rafters in a shed on his property, and from there the tale only gets more bizarre as the extent of his crimes was fully uncovered. Authorities found bowls made out of human skulls, lampshades made from human skin, and other atrocities inside his home that are too gruesome to mention. He attained mythological status and entered the public consciousness thanks to Robert Bloch’s 1959 novel Psycho, and the subsequent film that was directed by Hitchcock, hence the director’s appearance in Monsters. This leads to the obvious conclusion that not only will the third installment in the series tell the story of Gein, but also how his actions led to him becoming a notorious pop culture icon.
Ed Gein Has Captivated Us For More Than 60 Years
Officially dubbed The Original Monster, Season 3 of the Netflix hit is set to begin filming on Halloween, which means things are moving quickly toward a 2025 release. While The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story managed to draw in a massive 12.3 million views within its first four days, we’re expecting even bigger numbers for Gein’s story, considering just how much interest there’s been in him over the past six decades.
His story not only inspired the aforementioned Psycho, but Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, the Buffalo Bill character in Silence of the Lambs, the little known 2010 microbudget release, Ed Gein: The Musical, and a plethora of other movies as well. This speaks to just how desensitized we’ve become as a society to his crimes if we’re out here singing and dancing about them, right?
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It’s no joke to the residents of Plainfield, however, who have long been trying to forget about Gein and his depraved acts. The year following his arraignment saw the destruction of his house due to suspected arson so that it wouldn’t become a hotbed for tourists, and unlike something like the Roswell incident in New Mexico, you won’t find any themed restaurants in town with pictures of him on the wall. However, with the release of Monster Season 3 next year, they had best brace themselves for an influx of onlookers who will surely seek out Gein’s grave, which now remains unmarked, but not hard to find if you know where to look.