‘Monster’ Season 4’s IMDb Scores Reveal a Concerning Trend for Ryan Murphy’s Anthology

True crime has become one of streaming’s most reliable genres, but few shows have leaned into that appetite quite as aggressively as Ryan Murphy’s anthology series exploring America’s most notorious killers. Each new season arrives with its own wave of controversy, viral debate, and inevitable comparisons to what came before.

Since 2021, Murphy and co-creator Ian Brennan have built an entire franchise around dramatizing infamous true crime cases, moving from Jeffrey Dahmer to the Menendez brothers to Ed Gein across three increasingly divisive seasons. With its fourth installment now streaming, the show has finally turned its lens toward a female killer for the first time.

That shift arrives with ‘Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story,‘ and a newly compiled breakdown of IMDb episode ratings shows a trend that’s hard to ignore. Season averages have steadily declined with each new installment, moving from 7.9 for the Dahmer season down to 7.7, then 6.9, and now landing at 6.4 for the Lizzie Borden chapter.

IMDb ratings for each season of Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan's MONSTER series. pic.twitter.com/S7edlPdnzS

— What's on Netflix (@whatonnetflix) September 27, 2026

That downward trajectory becomes even more apparent when looking at individual episodes across the show’s history. The Dahmer season’s fifth episode peaked at an outstanding 9.1, while Season 4’s eighth episode dipped to a considerably rougher 5.3, marking one of the lowest single-episode scores the anthology has produced.

This decline in viewer ratings mirrors a similar pattern found among professional critics, who have grown increasingly skeptical of the franchise with each new season. Reviews for the Lizzie Borden season have landed around 50 percent on Rotten Tomatoes’ critics’ score, continuing a trend that includes 57 percent for the Dahmer season and a much rockier 22 percent for the Ed Gein installment.

Starring Ella Beatty as the titular Lizzie Borden, alongside Rebecca Hall, Charlie Hunnam, and Vicky Krieps, Season 4 depicts the young woman’s life leading up to the infamous 1892 axe murders of her father and stepmother. Some reviews have praised the season’s willingness to explore themes of female rage and societal oppression, even as others criticize the extent of its creative liberties with the historical record.

Despite the ratings slide, the show’s audience numbers tell a slightly different story. ‘Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story’ debuted with 12.1 million views in its first four days and has since surpassed 80 million total views, though that figure still trails the viewership highs set by the anthology’s earlier seasons.

Even with reviews growing more critical season over season, Netflix has shown no signs of slowing the franchise down. Brennan has already revealed plans to develop the anthology into as many as ten total seasons, suggesting the show’s creative team sees plenty of infamous cases left to explore regardless of how each individual installment is received.

That commitment raises an interesting question about whether declining ratings will eventually catch up with the franchise’s viewership numbers, or whether ‘Monster’ has built enough brand loyalty to keep pulling in massive audiences regardless of critical consensus. So far, the show has managed to remain one of Netflix’s most-watched original series despite consistently mixed reception.

Given how much cultural conversation each season generates, from ethical debates about dramatizing real victims to genuine fascination with the source material itself, ‘Monster’ seems built to thrive on controversy as much as praise. Whether that formula continues working as effectively with future seasons may depend on which case the show tackles next.

Watch the first trailer for Ryan Murphy’s anthology series 'Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story.'

Streaming September 17 on Netflix. pic.twitter.com/2vgckAn5y2

— Rotten Tomatoes 🍅 (@RottenTomatoes) August 11, 2026

For now, the IMDb numbers suggest audiences are growing slightly more critical with each new chapter, even as the franchise’s overall pull remains undeniable. Whether Season 5 can reverse that trend will likely depend on which infamous figure Murphy and Brennan choose to dramatize next.

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